Abbott orders pause of air permits for data centers. Experts question whether he has the authority.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to pause the issuance of air and water permits for data centers across the state. This directive, aimed at protecting the power grid and water resources, is in effect until audits by ERCOT and TWDB are completed in December. Environmental groups and Democrats question the legality and political motivation behind the order, while the TCEQ has indicated it will comply.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has directed the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to halt the issuance of air and water permits for data center projects statewide. The order, issued on September 21, states that data centers must protect the state's power grid and water resources and complete audits by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) before permits will be issued.
This move has been met with skepticism from some Democrats and environmental groups, who view it as political maneuvering by Abbott, especially given his past acceptance of $20 million in campaign contributions from the data center industry. Critics, including Democratic candidate for Texas Agriculture Commissioner Clayton Tucker, suggest the timing, 42 days before an election, indicates a political rather than a genuine change of heart from a governor who previously championed Texas as an "epicenter of AI."
Legal experts and environmental activists, such as Adrian Shelley, director of Public Citizen's Texas office, and Luke Metzger, executive director of Environment Texas, question whether Abbott or the TCEQ legally possess the authority to unilaterally pause permits for an entire industry. They point to a previous instance in April 2024 where then-TCEQ Chairman Jon Niermann reportedly stated the commission lacked such authority in response to a similar request from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick regarding cement kilns.
Despite the legal uncertainties, TCEQ's Air Permits division director, Samuel Short, has assured activists that the agency plans to uphold Abbott's directive, impacting projects like the Pacifico data center campus near Bastrop, which Anthropic is in talks to lease, and Amazon's Horizon Junction in the Panhandle. The permit pause is expected to last until ERCOT and TWDB complete their audits, anticipated by December, leading to concerns among critics that the directive may be lifted shortly after the elections without addressing the underlying issues through permanent legislative reform.