I don’t understand why people hold up TX as an example of small government. TX may be “ conservative” but only in the the sense that they wish to conserve the power of an interventionist State. Particularly where education is concerned.
You are right in that some areas have idiotic mandates- however we have kept some federal regulations out (we gave up medicaid money to do it). We also have our own electric grid- which keeps the feds off our backs in regards to electicity. In rural areas people tend ignore idiotic regs. There is a lot of jury nullification that go’s on if it does make it to court.