Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is taking his proposed regulations for data center developments a step further. During a campaign stop in Bullard, a town in East Texas that has around 5,500 residents, he called for a ban on the controversial developments in rural areas.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Abbott\u2019s recent statements on data centers are a far cry<\/a> from where he stood on the developments just last year, according to the Texas Tribune<\/a>. He told investors at a Texas economic development summit that the state needed to diversify its economy<\/a> to a greater extent in September. Later in 2025, he said that the state was \u201cthe epicenter of AI development\u201d during an announcement that Google made a $40 billion investment in Texan AI infrastructure. Recent projections show that Texas is on track to become the nation\u2019s leader in AI datacenter production.\u00a0<\/p>\n Two Texas counties have tried banning data center developments at the municipal level, but failed the legal challenges that came after, according to the publication. Even more municipal leaders have been begging state-level politicians to grant them more control over developments in their communities as their residents practically go into open revolt against data centers.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe must prohibit them from building AI data centers in rural Texas neighborhoods,\u201d Abbott said, going on to echo his support for more regulations<\/a> of data center developments.\u00a0<\/p>\n Specifically, Abbott is calling for all prospective data center developments to add portions of their power generation to Texas\u2019s shaky ERCOT-managed grid, a mandate to have closed-loop water systems and the elimination of certain incentives.\u00a0<\/p>\n