Opinion: For the Future of Texas, Pause Data Centers (5/18/2026)

An Editorial by Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller

Texas has always been a state that builds things. We farm, ranch, and produce the food, fuel, and fiber that power America. We champion growth, private enterprise, and innovation. The Lone Star State remains a global beacon of what freedom and opportunity can achieve.

But Texans also demand smart, common-sense decisions. Right now, we need an honest conversation about the explosive growth of hyperscale data centers that are rapidly consuming our land, water, and power.

It is time for a temporary moratorium on new hyperscale data center development in Texas until we fully assess the long-term impacts on our infrastructure, agricultural economy, and communities. We must not surrender our resources to global corporations without asking hard questions about the costs to Texas families, farmers, ranchers, and property owners.

These facilities are rising at breakneck speed across rural Texas, drawn by cheap land, reliable energy, and a pro-business climate. What began as promising economic development is quickly becoming a severe strain on the systems Texans depend on daily.

Many consume enough electricity to power entire towns. They draw massive volumes of water for cooling, even amid ongoing drought. Rural communities that have conserved resources for generations now compete with corporate giants that can transform entire regions overnight.

Texans deserve answers before this continues unchecked:

• How much will these projects stress the ERCOT grid during summer peaks or winter storms?
• What happens to property values and local infrastructure when prime farmland becomes industrial server farms?
• How much ground and surface water will be depleted?
• Who truly benefits from the tax incentives?
• And when agriculture’s needs collide with those of global tech giants, whose interests prevail?

These are not hypothetical questions. In Georgia, residents erupted after a data center reportedly used nearly 30 million gallons of water during drought. Here in Texas, Hill County recently paused rural data center construction for a year. Communities nationwide have imposed restrictions or bans over noise, water use, pollution, and infrastructure overload.

Texas farmers and ranchers already battle rising input costs, water shortages, and pressure on productive land. Meanwhile, residents face soaring housing prices and strained infrastructure. We cannot blindly accept every project wrapped in “AI” or “innovation” buzzwords.

Our food and agriculture sector generates roughly $900 billion in economic output. It feeds, clothes, and fuels the nation. Protecting our rural communities, water supplies, and electric grid is essential to Texas’s future. Leaders must ensure growth strengthens the state rather than hollowing it out.

A temporary moratorium is not anti-business or anti-innovation. It creates breathing room for lawmakers, regulators, utilities, water experts, landowners, and agriculture to craft responsible guardrails before the industry outgrows our ability to manage it.

We need comprehensive, independent studies on water use and grid reliability and stronger transparency on incentives. We need clear priorities that put critical infrastructure and Texans first, and firm protections for productive agricultural land against permanent industrial conversion.

President Trump’s “America First” philosophy applies here. Economic development must benefit working Texans and strengthen our communities, not overwhelm them.

Texans have built the greatest agricultural economy in America through generations of resilience against drought, flood, freeze, and market turmoil. We should not risk that foundation for Silicon Valley promises and photo-op ribbon-cuttings. Growth without vision is not leadership.

Texans demand balance: a data center policy that safeguards our resources, economy, and way of life. A temporary moratorium is not anti-progress. It is pro-Texas.