Gov. Greg Abbott says “Texans must come first.”
I hope he means it.
I don’t think he does.
Texas is in the middle of an enormous data-center boom. The projects promise investment and jobs, but they can also demand staggering amounts of electricity and water while changing the rural communities where many are being built.
Abbott now faces a choice between the Texans demanding protection from that growth and some of the richest and most powerful financial interests in the state.
I have come to the conclusion that, in the end, the billionaires will win.
Abbott Wasn’t Always Fighting Data Centers
It wasn’t long ago that Abbott was celebrating them.
In November 2025, Abbott joined Google in announcing a $40 billion Texas investment that included three new data-center campuses. His office promoted Texas as an “epicenter” of artificial-intelligence development. (Texas.gov)
Then Texans started pushing back.
The Texas Tribune has identified at least 248 additional data centers planned across Texas, with nearly half proposed for unincorporated areas where county governments generally have far less authority than cities to control development. (The Texas Tribune)
The public noticed.
A June University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll found 56% of Texas voters opposed having a data center built in their community. Opposition rose to 62% among rural Texans and 60% in the suburbs. (The Texas Politics Project)
Those rural voters matter to Republicans.
Suddenly Abbott became a data-center regulator.
“Texans Must Come First”
On August 3, Abbott ordered the Public Utility Commission and ERCOT to audit data-center projects seeking connections to the Texas electrical grid.
His words could not have been clearer:
“Simply put, Texans must come first.” (Texas.gov)
Abbott’s own order acknowledged the scale of the problem. ERCOT was considering more than 474 gigawatts of requests for new connections, more than five times Texas’ record peak electricity demand, and Abbott said roughly 90% of those requests were from data centers. (Texas.gov)
The audit will examine electricity use, water use, tax incentives, ownership, and the effects of projects on neighboring communities. No project going through the process is supposed to move forward until the audit is completed. (Texas.gov)
That sounds tough.
Now follow the money.
Abbott’s Donors Are in the Data-Center Business
The Houston Chronicle examined Abbott’s campaign-finance reports and found that several of his largest donors have business interests benefiting from the data-center boom.
Real-estate developer Ed Roski Jr. gave Abbott $1 million in April. Roski’s Majestic Realty leases Texas warehouse space to Google.
Energy executive Kelcy Warren gave Abbott $500,000 in June. His company, Energy Transfer, has announced deals to provide natural gas to data centers around Texas.
Rhett Bennett, whose Black Mountain businesses are developing data centers, gave Abbott another $500,000.
Elon Musk, whose companies are deeply involved in artificial intelligence and computing infrastructure, also gave Abbott $500,000. (Houston Chronicle)
And there is more.
The Chronicle reported that three former Abbott chiefs of staff have been hired as lobbyists by data-center companies. (Houston Chronicle)
None of that proves Abbott has made a secret deal with anyone.
Campaign contributions do not prove a quid pro quo.
But a good lawyer does not ignore relevant evidence simply because it does not amount to a confession.
Abbott is under pressure from both directions.
On one side are Texans worried about their water, their electric bills, their land and the character of their communities.
On the other are enormous corporations, wealthy investors, campaign contributors and an industry with billions of dollars already committed to Texas.
Now There Is Real Money Trapped in the Middle
Abbott’s pause created another problem.
Companies seeking admission to ERCOT’s new Batch Zero process were generally required to post security of $50,000 for every megawatt they wanted connected to the grid.
Reuters reported that some individual companies may have posted more than $100 million each. (Reuters)
Those deposits are now sitting there while Abbott’s audit proceeds.
Under the current structure, roughly 20% of many deposits is nonrefundable. A proposal before the Public Utility Commission could increase that to 80%, although that change has not been adopted. (Reuters)
That creates tremendous pressure to resolve the issue.
And it gives Texans something important to watch.
Watch What Happens to the Money
Abbott does not have to announce one morning that he has surrendered to the data-center industry.
Politics rarely works that way.
The audit can be completed.
New safeguards can be announced.
Companies can promise to conserve water, build their own power, reduce noise, and pay more of their infrastructure costs.
Deposits can be protected, credited, or otherwise dealt with under whatever rules Texas ultimately adopts.
And then Abbott can announce that the projects now meet Texas standards and are safe to proceed.
He can tell voters:
I stopped the data centers and made them follow the rules.
And he can tell the industry:
Texas is still open for business.
Everybody gets a story.
The billionaires get their data centers.
I Hope I Am Wrong
Abbott says Texans come first.
Good.
Then this should be easy to judge.
When a data center threatens a community’s water supply, electric reliability, or quality of life, protect the community.
When taxpayers are being asked to subsidize projects owned by some of the richest corporations in the world, protect the taxpayers.
When rural Texans say they do not want enormous industrial facilities dropped beside their homes, give those Texans meaningful power to say no.
Abbott now has the opportunity to prove that “Texans must come first” was more than a political slogan.
I have watched politics too long to be optimistic.
When the final choice comes down to ordinary Texans on one side and billionaires with enormous amounts of money on the other, I think I know who will win.
I hope Greg Abbott proves me wrong.
