Governor directs the water board to enforce the state water use survey against data centers that did not return it
The Office of the Governor issued a directive to the Texas Water Development Board on September 14th, 2026. It tells the board to enforce the water use survey requirement against major water users, naming data centers. The directive covers failures already made as well as future ones. The reason the directive gives for needing the numbers is the state water plan. The board writes it and can't do that while it is denied detail on what is consumed now and what will be. That sentence is the Governor's office describing the board's position rather than the board speaking. The Texas Water Code requires a complete and accurate water use survey. A recipient who does not complete and return it commits an offense punishable as a crime. One who returns it late becomes ineligible for TCEQ permits, amendments or renewals under Chapter 11 of that code. The board is told to refer noncompliance to the County or District Attorney and to notify TCEQ for possible permit disqualification. It is also told to partner with the grid operator on the data center audit the Governor ordered on August 3rd, 2026. It must report back on its enforcement by October 14th, 2026.
How to take part
The directive is published in full on the Governor's own newsroom, with a link to the letter it was sent under. No comment window attaches to a directive. The Texas Water Development Board is the reachable party on how it will enforce, and its board meetings are posted on its own calendar.
Where
Statewide. This decision applies across Texas rather than to a named county.
Timeline
- ordered
Directive issued to the Texas Water Development Board
- administrative deadline
Board must report to the Office of the Governor on its enforcement activities
- 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.
- 2026-09-19
The directive is published and the board has not yet said how it will enforce. The date it has to report back on has not arrived.
- 2026-09-23
The water board is still enforcing the survey on the Governor's instruction, and the law behind it still has not changed.
- 2026-09-26
The water board is still enforcing the survey on the Governor's instruction, and the law behind it is unchanged.
- 2026-09-29
The water board is still enforcing the water use survey against data centers on the Governor's instruction, under an unchanged Water Code.
- 2026-10-02
The Governor's directive to the water board is unconfirmed this run. His office posts it on a site that bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-03
The Governor's directive to the water board is still unconfirmed. His office posts it on a site that bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-04
The Governor's directive to the water board is still unconfirmed. His office posts it on a site that bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-05
The Governor's directive to the water board is still unconfirmed this time. His office's site bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-06
The Governor's directive to the water board is still unconfirmed this time. His office's site bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-07
The governor's directive to the water board is still unconfirmed on its own page, which bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-08
The governor's directive to the water board is still unconfirmed on its own page, which still bars automated readers. The water board's report back to the governor is due next week.
- 2026-10-09
The directive to the water board is still unconfirmed on its own page, which bars automated readers. The board's report back is due next week.
- 2026-10-10
The directive to the water board stays unconfirmed on its own page, which bars automated readers. The board's report back is due within the week.
- 2026-10-25
The Texas Tribune reported on October 14th that the water board says it has no authority to prosecute a facility that skips the survey. The directive's own page still bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-26
The Governor's directive to the water board is still unconfirmed on its own page, which bars automated readers. The Tribune's account of the survey count reads as cited.
- 2026-10-29
The Governor's direction to the water board on the water use survey is still unconfirmed, since the office's site bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-30
The Governor's direction on the water use survey remains unconfirmed, because the office's site still bars automated readers.
- 2026-10-31
The Governor's order to enforce the water use survey against data centers is still unconfirmed, because the office's site refuses automated readers.
- 2026-11-01
The Governor's order to enforce the water use survey against data centers stays unconfirmed, because the office's site refuses this project.
- 2026-11-03
The Governor's order to enforce the water use survey against data centers remains unconfirmed, because the office's site still refuses this project.
- 2026-11-05
The Governor's order on the water use survey has no fresh confirmation. The office's site stays off limits to this project.
- 2026-11-06
The Governor's order to enforce the water use survey against data centers is unconfirmed today. The office's site stays off limits.
- 2026-11-07
The Governor's order to enforce the water use survey against data centers is not confirmed anew. The office's site remains off limits.
- 2026-11-08
The Governor's directive telling the water board to enforce its use survey against data centers still reads as issued.
The evidence
Every fact above rests on one of these. The words are the source's own.
I direct the Texas Water Development Board to use its enforcement authority to penalize past failures and to impose legal consequences for any future failure to comply.Office of the Texas Governor, Governor Abbott Directs TWDB To Penalize Data Center Reporting Failures Primary source, official · gov.texas.gov
Data centers must share the duty to protect Texas waterOffice of the Texas Governor, Governor Abbott Directs TWDB To Penalize Data Center Reporting Failures Primary source, official · gov.texas.gov
TWDB is charged with developing a state water plan that meets the needs of Texans and cannot perform that task if it is denied detailed information on existing and anticipated water consumption.Office of the Texas Governor, Governor Abbott Directs TWDB To Penalize Data Center Reporting Failures Primary source, official · gov.texas.gov
A data center that fails to complete and return the survey commits an offense punishable as a crime.Office of the Texas Governor, Governor Abbott Directs TWDB To Penalize Data Center Reporting Failures Primary source, official · gov.texas.gov
A data center that fails to timely complete and return the survey is ineligible for TCEQ permits, amendments, or renewals under Chapter 11 of the Texas Water Code.Office of the Texas Governor, Governor Abbott Directs TWDB To Penalize Data Center Reporting Failures Primary source, official · gov.texas.gov
Major water users, including data centers, appear to have committed civil and criminal violations through failure to provide TWDB with required information about water usage.Office of the Texas Governor, Governor Abbott Directs TWDB To Penalize Data Center Reporting Failures Primary source, official · gov.texas.gov
TWDB shall update the Office of the Governor by October 14, 2026, on the progress of its enforcement activitiesOffice of the Texas Governor, Governor Abbott Directs TWDB To Penalize Data Center Reporting Failures Primary source, official · gov.texas.gov
But the board says it has no authority to prosecute violations itself, and state officials don’t know if fines have been issued against data centers.The Texas Tribune, Texas’ crackdown on data centers exposes limits of state law Journalism · texastribune.org
Under state law, facilities that fail to complete required water-use surveys can be charged with a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by up to a $500 fine, and barred from certain state funding and environmental permits.The Texas Tribune, Texas’ crackdown on data centers exposes limits of state law Journalism · texastribune.org
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 Office of the Governor issued a directive to the Texas Water Development Board on September 14th, 2026. It tells the board to enforce the water use survey requirement against major water users, naming data centers. The directive covers failures already made as well as future ones. The reason the directive gives for needing the numbers is the state water plan. The board writes it and can't do that while it is denied detail on what is consumed now and what will be. That sentence is the Governor's office describing the board's position rather than the board speaking. The Texas Water Code requires a complete and accurate water use survey. A recipient who does not complete and return it commits an offense punishable as a crime. One who returns it late becomes ineligible for TCEQ permits, amendments or renewals under Chapter 11 of that code. The board is told to refer noncompliance to the County or District Attorney and to notify TCEQ for possible permit disqualification. It is also told to partner with the grid operator on the data center audit the Governor ordered on August 3rd, 2026. It must report back on its enforcement by October 14th, 2026.
Who decides it?
Office of the Texas Governor decides. The record names the deciding body for every entry it carries.
Can the public take part?
The directive is published in full on the Governor's own newsroom, with a link to the letter it was sent under. No comment window attaches to a directive. The Texas Water Development Board is the reachable party on how it will enforce, and its board meetings are posted on its own calendar. No dated public window is on the record. The deciding body is named and reachable.
Where in Texas does it apply?
It applies statewide.
Has it been decided?
It has been decided. The dates on the item page carry when.
What happens next?
No future date is on the record. The last dated step on it was administrative deadline on October 14th.
When did it start?
The earliest date on its record is September 14th, 2026.
What kind of decision is it?
It is filed under land, water and permitting.
What sources back it?
Two sources back it. One of them is primary.
When was it last checked?
Every fact on it was last verified against its source on November 8th, 2026.
Cite this
Texas AI Docket, Governor directs the water board to enforce the state water use survey against data centers that did not return it. Tracked since September 14th, 2026. Last verified November 8th, 2026. https://texasaidocket.com/item/tx-2026-0171/. Reuse permitted under CC BY 4.0 with attribution. The same entry is in the docket JSON as item tx-2026-0171.
Beat
Filed under Land, water and permitting, with every other decision on that beat.