California has long faced criticism for driving away business and workers, due to high taxes and prices and tough regulations.
A few high-profile business titans have loudly departed, most notably Tesla and SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk, who moved Tesla's headquarters — and himself — to Texas during the pandemic (though SpaceX remains headquartered in Southern California).
Nonetheless, there are mounting predictions from some economists that the Golden State could soon surpass Germany to become the world's fourth-largest economy.
