A Texas Senate committee took testimony on how much water data center cooling uses and whether local water providers are told
The Senate Committee on Water, Agriculture and Rural Affairs met at 9:00 AM on Tuesday, September 1st, 2026 in hearing room E1.012 at the Capitol. Senator Charles Perry chairs it. The posted notice sets one interim charge. It is examining current water consumption rates for high consumption cooling technologies including data centers. The charge directs the committee to make recommendations improving transparency for local water providers. It also tells the committee to weigh industrial growth against water affordability for households and for agricultural producers. Public testimony was limited to two minutes and written testimony went to the committee clerk. A hearing is not a decision. It is the stage at which the committee that writes the state's water bills decides what to recommend.
How to take part
The committee posts its notice with the room, the hour and the charge before it meets, and it took invited and public testimony. Public testimony was limited to two minutes. Written testimony goes to the committee clerk, whose address is on the notice, so a Texan who could not be in Austin could still be read into the record.
Where
Statewide. This decision applies across Texas rather than to a named county.
Timeline
- hearing
Public hearing on the interim charge
- Today
How this decision moved
One dated line per check, oldest first. A line that says nothing changed means somebody looked and it had not.
- 2026-09-07
Admitted. The committee's posted notice sets the hearing for September 1st, 2026 and carries the interim charge in full. The charge names data centers and asks the committee to recommend ways to improve transparency for local water providers.
- 2026-09-10
The committee's schedule still records that it took testimony on water use for data center cooling and on whether local water providers are told. No report has been published from it and no further hearing is posted.
The evidence
Every fact above rests on one of these. The words are the source's own.
COMMITTEE: Water, Agriculture and Rural Affairs TIME & DATE: 9:00 AM, Tuesday, September 1, 2026 PLACE: E1.012 (Hearing Room) CHAIR: Senator Charles PerryTexas Legislature Online, Senate Notice of Public Hearing Primary source, official · capitol.texas.gov
Assessing the Water Demands of Energy-Intensive Technologies: Examine the current water consumption rates for high-consumption cooling technologies, including data centers. Make recommendations to improve transparency for local water providers and ensure industrial growth does not compromise the affordability of water for Texas residents and agricultural producers.Texas Legislature Online, Senate Notice of Public Hearing Primary source, official · capitol.texas.gov
Public testimony is limited to 2 minutes.Texas Legislature Online, Senate Notice of Public Hearing Primary source, official · capitol.texas.gov
Questions about this decision
Answered from the record itself. Every answer is assembled from stored fields, so an answer the record has no basis for is left out rather than guessed.
What is this decision?
The Senate Committee on Water, Agriculture and Rural Affairs met at 9:00 AM on Tuesday, September 1st, 2026 in hearing room E1.012 at the Capitol. Senator Charles Perry chairs it. The posted notice sets one interim charge. It is examining current water consumption rates for high consumption cooling technologies including data centers. The charge directs the committee to make recommendations improving transparency for local water providers. It also tells the committee to weigh industrial growth against water affordability for households and for agricultural producers. Public testimony was limited to two minutes and written testimony went to the committee clerk. A hearing is not a decision. It is the stage at which the committee that writes the state's water bills decides what to recommend.
Who decides it?
Texas Senate Committee on Water, Agriculture and Rural Affairs decides. The record names the deciding body for every entry it carries.
Can the public take part?
The committee posts its notice with the room, the hour and the charge before it meets, and it took invited and public testimony. Public testimony was limited to two minutes. Written testimony goes to the committee clerk, whose address is on the notice, so a Texan who could not be in Austin could still be read into the record.
Where in Texas does it apply?
It applies statewide.
Has it been decided?
It is pending. No final decision is on the record.
What happens next?
No future date is on the record. The last dated step on it was hearing on September 1st.
When did it start?
The earliest date on its record is September 1st, 2026.
What kind of decision is it?
It is filed under land, water and permitting.
What sources back it?
One source backs it. It is primary.
When was it last checked?
Every fact on it was last verified against its source on September 10th, 2026.
Cite this
Texas AI Docket, A Texas Senate committee took testimony on how much water data center cooling uses and whether local water providers are told. Tracked since September 1st, 2026. Last verified September 10th, 2026. https://texasaidocket.com/item/tx-2026-0126/. Reuse permitted under CC BY 4.0 with attribution. The same entry is in the docket JSON as item tx-2026-0126.
Beat
Filed under Land, water and permitting, with every other decision on that beat.