Texas Shuts Down Automated Permit System After Data Center Controversy

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has temporarily shut down its automated electronic permitting system after watchdog groups found that data center-related authorizations continued advancing despite Gov. Greg Abbott's (R) directive to pause approvals.

The agency suspended at least 17  permits identified by Public Citizen and FracTracker Alliance, which reported that TCEQ records showed approvals for data center construction projects after Abbott's September 21 order. The groups identified 35 permitting actions connected to data center development during the period under review.

TCEQ disabled its State of Texas Environmental Electronic Reporting System, known as STEERS, to ensure applications are reviewed by agency staff. Applicants must now physically submit certain applications so officials can determine whether they are related to data centers, agency spokesman Ryan Vise said.

The disputed authorizations include stormwater construction notices that allow projects to address runoff from sites undergoing activities such as land clearing, grading, and excavation. TCEQ has disputed watchdogs' characterization of the records as conventional permits, describing them as automated stormwater authorizations rather than permits to operate a facility. The agency said it suspended the identified authorizations.

Abbott's September directive instructed TCEQ to halt permits sought by data centers while state agencies and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas gathered information about projects' electricity and water use. The order came amid growing concerns over the industry's effects on Texas power demand, water resources, and nearby communities.

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Gina Hinojosa criticized the shutdown, accusing Abbott of failing to enforce his own directive and calling for stronger protections for Texas communities.

"Instead of taking real action to protect our communities, the state is shutting down its permitting system because Abbott didn’t even enforce his own directive," said Hinojosa. "Texas deserves more than empty promises from a Governor whose job it is to protect them"

The controversy adds pressure on state regulators as Texas continues to attract large-scale data center investment. The temporary filing-system shutdown shifts applications to manual review, while questions remain about how the state will identify and consistently enforce restrictions on projects covered by Abbott's pause.