Attorney General Ken Paxton has launched an investigation into hundreds of data center developments across Texas over their compliance with state water-use reporting requirements.
Paxton announced Sept. 24 that his office is investigating data center developments that have not provided a response to the Texas Water Development Board’s water-use survey. The investigation initially includes data centers in 18 counties, with Paxton’s office demanding that the facilities provide up-to-date and accurate information about their water usage.
Under Texas law, the Texas Water Development Board is authorized to conduct surveys of entities that use groundwater and surface water for municipal, industrial, power generation or mining purposes. The annual survey is used to collect water-use data for the state’s water planning, resource management and conservation efforts.
The TWDB’s water-use survey targets operating industrial facilities, including data centers, that use more than 10 million gallons of water per year, which the agency considers a “significant industrial user.”
Facilities that receive the survey are required by law to complete and return it. Failure to do so can result in a Class C misdemeanor, as well as ineligibility for certain Texas Water Development Board financial assistance and certain water-related permits, amendments or renewals.
The investigation comes as Texas officials have increased scrutiny of data centers’ water consumption amid concerns about the state’s rapidly growing demand for water.
According to The Texas Tribune, fewer than 30% of data centers surveyed by the TWDB responded to the survey in each of the past three years. In 2025, the agency surveyed 329 data centers, with only about 30% submitting responses. The data collected by the survey helps state officials project future water demand as part of Texas’ long-term water planning process.
Gov. Greg Abbott has separately directed the TWDB to address failures to comply with the reporting requirement. Abbott ordered the agency to penalize data centers that fail to submit required surveys and asked for an update on compliance and enforcement by Oct. 14.
“My office is currently investigating hundreds of data center developments to ensure that they are transparent about their water usage and fully compliant with the law,” Paxton said. “It is our responsibility to steward our state’s land well, and we cannot do that if companies are blatantly disregarding their legal obligations to Texas and to our citizens. We cannot sacrifice our resources, water, or energy supply, and I will continue to fight for our communities across this state.”
Paxton’s investigation is separate from another investigation his office announced earlier this month involving an AI data center development in Taylor.
On Sept. 17, Paxton announced an investigation into the proposed development over the potential misuse of property that was conveyed more than 25 years ago for future use as public parkland. According to Paxton’s office, the property was conveyed in 1999 to the Texas Parks and Recreation Foundation for $10 and later transferred to the City of Taylor and Taylor Economic Development Corporation before being sold in 2025 for $10 million to an entity behind the proposed data center project.
The data centers under initial investigation in Paxton’s water-use investigation are located in Harris, Montgomery, Travis, Dallas, Tarrant, Smith, Bexar, Tom Green, Potter, Randall, Lubbock, Midland, Ector, Wichita, Victoria, Brazos, Nueces and El Paso counties.
