Texas Data Centers Avoid Disclosing Water Usage to State Regulators
Texas state agencies are struggling to collect crucial water and energy usage data from data center companies, with a majority failing to respond to surveys or mandatory reporting due to minimal penalties. This lack of transparency is hindering policy decisions and fueling public opposition. In response, Governor Abbott has mandated public utilities block data centers from passing infrastructure costs to consumers and signaled support for future legislation requiring more efficient water cooling systems.
Texas is facing challenges in regulating the burgeoning data center industry as state agencies report extremely low compliance rates from companies regarding water and energy usage surveys. The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) and the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) revealed in a legislative hearing that less than a third of surveyed data center companies returned questionnaires, with some mandatory reports dropping to a mere 17% response rate.
State Representative Brad Buckley openly criticized these findings, highlighting that crucial policy decisions regarding infrastructure and natural resources cannot be made without accurate data. Data centers cite the competitive nature of their business for non-compliance, with the Data Center Coalition suggesting aggregated and anonymized data might improve future participation.
This trend of non-disclosure is exacerbated by the minor penalties for non-compliance—a Class C misdemeanor with a maximum $500 fine, which is negligible for multi-million-dollar facilities. Amid growing community pushback over resource strain, Governor Abbott has responded by mandating public utilities prevent data centers from offloading massive infrastructure connection costs onto consumers. He has also expressed support for future legislation that would compel data centers to adopt more efficient water recirculation cooling systems.