Even though Texas encompasses such a large area, the lion’s share of the population, some 85%, resides in just under 27% of it—in areas designated as metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs).
Formal designations of metropolitan areas were initially made in 1949. By definition, they are areas with a substantial population center of at least 50,000 persons and core census tracts or block groups with densities of 1,000 persons per square mile. MSAs are named for the largest city in the area and always follow county lines. Where an MSA contains more than one county, all of the counties have a substantial degree of economic homogeneity and are economically integrated through commuting patterns.
Changes to MSA designations are considered every decade and are determined by the official US Census Bureau figures. Prior to 2004, there were 27 Texas metro areas formed of 58 counties. Those MSAs generated about 92% of the state’s real gross product (RGP or output) in 2003 (up from 90% in 1993). As of this year, the Census Bureau redefined the metro areas and there are now 25 MSAs in the Lone Star State accounting for 77 of the 254 counties in Texas.
These changes resulted in adding 22 counties and dropping three. The San Antonio MSA gained four new counties, the most for any Texas metro thanks to its rapid outward expansion. With the division of the Odessa-Midland metro, there are now nine single-county MSAs. The new Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington MSA includes the most counties with 12. This metro area is a combination of what used to be two MSAs (Dallas and Fort Worth-Arlington). The area is subdivided into two metropolitan divisions—Dallas-Plano-Irving and Fort Worth-Arlington.
Because of the relative growth rates among cities, six MSAs were given new names by adding or removing the names of cities included in the previous designation. Two were created—Midland and Odessa—in splitting the Odessa-Midland MSA (which were joined together after the 1990 Census). The former Brazoria and Galveston-Texas City MSAs are now included in the Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land MSA.
While the acronym MSA is not a regular part of the vocabulary of many Texans and changes in metro area definitions may appear to be far removed from daily life, they actually influence many business decisions. For example, through the addition of four counties, the reported size of the San Antonio MSA population (and other measures of business activity) will jump significantly. For companies considering corporate locations, these larger numbers may make San Antonio more competitive. For Odessa and Midland, splitting the metro areas leaves us with two small MSAs rather than one that is larger, which may hamper efforts to attract attention in the national scene as a potential place to do business or open a retail establishment.
The fact is, those analyzing economic data are typically doing so using MSA definitions. They don’t always look at a map to recognize that Odessa and Midland, or Tyler and Longview, or Waco and Killeen-Temple, or Brownsville-Harlingen and McAllen-Edinburg-Pharr, are in adjacent counties and have substantial interaction. As evolving demographics lead to shifts in the way the Census Bureau (and all other federal entities) define MSAs and report statistics, the dynamics of cities can change. Adding fast-growing outlying counties, for example, can enhance the perceived prospects of a metro area.