In 2001, the Texas House of Representatives passed a resolution about a hamburger chain.
House Resolution 723, 77th Legislature. The operative language is one sentence: the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas Legislature hereby recognize Whataburger as a Texas treasure.
Not a tax break. Not an incentive package. A declaration, entered into the permanent record of a state legislature, that a fast food company is a treasure.
Twenty-four years later the state did it again, with Senate Resolution 412 naming April 16, 2025 as Whataburger Wednesday at the State Capitol.
That certified identity is the single most valuable asset this company owns. And in 2019 it was sold, along with a majority stake, to a private equity firm in Chicago.