Statewide · elected officials
State-level action on data centers
Directives, executive orders, bills, and regulatory rulings from Texas’s statewide officials and agencies — the Governor, the Legislature, the PUC, ERCOT, and others — on data centers, large-load power, battery storage, and crypto mining. Distinct from the 254-county tracker. Updated by the same weekly news sweep.
Abbott orders TCEQ to halt all data center permits pending audits
Governor Greg Abbott
Governor Greg Abbott directed the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to halt all permits sought by data centers until state agency audits are completed, the fourth such directive in four months.
Abbott orders a halt on all data center permits ↗Abbott orders TCEQ to halt all data center permits pending ERCOT grid audit
Governor Greg Abbott
Governor Greg Abbott ordered the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to halt all data center-related permits until ERCOT completes its audit of the data center interconnection waitlist, expanding his earlier August moratorium on new grid approvals.
Texas Gov. Abbott orders data center permit halt weeks after issuing moratorium ↗Abbott directs Texas Water Development Board to enforce data center water-use reporting
Governor Greg Abbott
Governor Greg Abbott directed the Texas Water Development Board to compel data centers and other major water users to comply with water-use reporting requirements and impose legal consequences for noncompliance.
Governor Abbott expands data center permitting pause to environmental permits pending ERCOT audit ↗Abbott orders comprehensive audit of data centers, pausing new grid interconnections
Governor Greg Abbott
Governor Greg Abbott issued a directive to the PUC and ERCOT mandating a comprehensive verification and audit of all data centers advancing through ERCOT's interconnection process, effectively pausing new approvals until the review is complete.
Gov. Greg Abbott pauses new data centers until ERCOT, PUCT audit energy, water usage ↗Abbott calls for 2027 legislation codifying data center requirements
Governor Greg Abbott
Abbott said he would call for legislation from state lawmakers to codify his expectations for data centers, including net-positive electricity impact, noise reduction, repealing tax incentives, and requiring ecological reports.
Most Texans say they oppose local data centers as politicians shift their focus on regulating them ↗Abbott directs PUC and ERCOT to protect ratepayers from data center costs
Governor Greg Abbott
Governor Abbott directed the Public Utility Commission and ERCOT to require data centers to fully fund their own electric infrastructure costs and to report additional ratepayer-protection measures by July 17, 2026.
Abbott Orders Texas Data Centers Audit, Halts Grid Connections ↗Abbott directs PUC and ERCOT to audit large loads before permit approval
Governor Greg Abbott
Governor Greg Abbott issued a directive ordering state regulators to audit data center companies before approving permits to ensure they pay for their own electric infrastructure, reuse water and reduce costs for Texas ratepayers.
Texas PUC Responds to Abbott on Data Centers ↗