Texas

Based on geographic area, Texas is the largest of the 48 contiguous United States, and according to the 2013 census, maintains a population of 26.4 million, the second largest in the country. Texas is a majority-minority state, with a population that is 44 percent white, 38.4 percent Hispanic/Latino, and 12.4 percent African American. Despite a gross domestic product (GDP) of $1.2 trillion, in 2012, the Texas poverty rate was 17.9 percent, one of the highest in the country. Texas has a significant income gap between the rich and poor, with poverty largely concentrated in urban areas, and disproportionately impacting nonwhite people. Texas borders Mexico to the south, and maintains a large immigrant and undocumented population. The two poorest counties in the state are adjacent to ...