New Texas House priorities include water supply, data centers, absorbing New Mexico counties
News ClipFOX 7 Austin·TX·3/26/2026
The Texas House of Representatives has released its 2027 committee priorities, which include examining the state's groundwater supply, the impact of AI data centers, and potentially absorbing New Mexico counties. Committees are tasked with studying data centers' effects on water use, the economy, labor demands, and grid resilience. This signals a legislative focus on regulating data center development due to concerns over natural resource strain.
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Gov: Texas House of Representatives, Speaker Dustin Burrows, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Texas Legislature, Agriculture and Livestock Committee, Appropriations Committee, Energy Resources Committee, Environmental Regulation Committee, Natural Resources Committee, Governmental Oversight Committee, State Affairs Committee, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, NM Gov. Michelle Grisham
Speaker Dustin Burrows has released the 2027 Texas House of Representatives committee priorities, setting the agenda for the upcoming 90th Texas Legislature. Among the key issues identified are the state's groundwater supply, the impact of AI data centers, and a study into potentially absorbing contiguous counties from New Mexico.
The legislative charges task various committees with assessing the effectiveness of previous laws, studying major issues, and reviewing government agencies. Specifically, the issue of AI data centers is a prominent concern. The Natural Resources committee is directed to investigate data centers' impact on water supply, while the State Affairs committee will examine their development in relation to the economy, labor demands, and grid resilience. This legislative focus comes amid growing public and political controversy surrounding data center development, balancing potential economic benefits against concerns over natural resource depletion and the strain on the state's historically unstable power grid.
The article notes that Texas currently hosts approximately 400 data centers, either operational, under construction, or in planning stages. Environmental experts remain uncertain about the long-term effects of these developments on Texas's water supply and power infrastructure. State lawmakers are expected to play a crucial role in monitoring and regulating the industry's expansion. The broader context of the priorities includes addressing a long-standing water crisis in Texas, with recent alerts in Central Texas areas like Hays County, the Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer, and Pflugerville, and projected emergencies in Corpus Christi due to drought.
The most unusual priority involves studying the possibility of Lea County, New Mexico, or other contiguous counties, seceding and joining Texas. This idea was first floated by Burrows on social media. FOX Local has reached out to state governors for comment on this particular issue.