Texas ag commissioner says Abbott should put farmers over data centers

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller has renewed his call for Governor Greg Abbott to convene a special legislative session to address the perceived threats posed by the unchecked expansion of data centers across the state. Miller asserts that these facilities endanger Texas agriculture, rural communities, and the stability of the electric grid, and criticizes Governor Abbott for not taking more decisive action despite widespread warnings.

Miller specifically targeted Governor Abbott's earlier statements celebrating the withdrawal of a proposed East Texas data center, calling it an inadequate measure that does not mitigate the hundreds of data centers planned or already operating. He emphasized that the loss of farmland, strain on the electric grid, and depletion of water supplies, which data centers consume in millions of gallons daily for cooling, remain critical issues.

While acknowledging Governor Abbott's June directive for state regulators to shield Texans from electricity costs related to data centers and mandate water-efficient technologies and usage reporting, Miller believes these steps are insufficient. He argues that current state policy provides preferential treatment to "billion-dollar technology" companies over Texas farmers and ranchers. Governor Abbott's Press Secretary, Andrew Mahaleris, responded by stating the governor has made it clear that data centers cannot take precedence over Texas families and has directed the PUC and ERCOT to ensure data centers bear their own infrastructure costs, provide their own power, reuse water, and contribute to lowering residential electric bills.