A report released this week claimed that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality moved forward with review and approval of development related to data centers, despite a directive from Texas Governor Greg Abbott to pause data center approvals.
Where
Statewide
When
Report released during week of Oct. 23, 2026; specific date not stated
Sources
Reported by 2 outlets
Taxes and money
None stated in sources.
Who's involved
Texas Commission on Environmental Qualityagency that reviewed and approved data center development
Greg AbbottTexas Governor who directed pause on data center approvals
The facts
A report claimed the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality moved forward with review and approval of data center development.1
Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a directive to pause data center approvals.1
Who said what
These are statements and claims made by the people involved. They are reported, not verified.
Report author Texas Commission on Environmental Quality continued data center approvals despite Abbott's pause directive1
How they headlined it
The same event, as each outlet put it. Marked words appear in only one outlet's headline.
These outlets were found through Google News headlines. Google decides which outlets appear there, and they lean mostly one way, so this sheet can only be as balanced as the reporting it was built from. Leanings are AllSides Media Bias Ratings.
Texas suspended construction permits for 17 data center projects and took the STEERS automated permitting portal offline after it continued approving applications despite Governor Greg Abbott's September 2026 call to pause new data center permits.
Greg Abbott, Governor of Texas; FracTracker Alliance, Watchdog group that reported permits were issued after pause order; Public Citizen, Watchdog group that reported permits were issued after pause order and 2 more
Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte clarified Friday that the Longhorns did not use their newly announced artificial intelligence platform, Bevo Lab, to decide on a failed fourth-down play in their loss to Florida. Del Conte said he offered the play only as an example of what the platform could suggest, not what it actually did.
Chris Del Conte, Texas athletic director; Steve Sarkisian, Texas head football coach; Arch Manning, Texas quarterback and 2 more
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance agreement with Lululemon USA Inc. following an investigation into per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the company's products. The investigation found no PFAS in Lululemon's products or materials.
Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General; Lululemon USA Inc., activewear company
Texas A&M Forest Service awarded approximately $20 million in grant funds to 518 rural volunteer fire departments across Texas through the Rural Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Program's first fiscal year 2027 funding round.
$$19.6 million for grant funding for rural volunteer fire departments
Texas A&M Forest Service, awarding agency; Merrie Noak, Texas A&M Forest Service program leader
Shandra Carter, director of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department since 2022, resigned on Friday following the agency's unprecedented multiday lockdown at all five youth prisons that confined hundreds of children to cells continuously. The lockdown came after an assault against a juvenile correctional officer.
Shandra Carter, Director of Texas Juvenile Justice Department; Texas Juvenile Justice Department, State agency overseeing youth prisons
Gilead Sciences Inc agreed to a $45 million settlement on October 22, 2026, resolving allegations that it used illegal kickbacks to influence Medicaid prescriptions in Texas. The settlement ends a legal action initiated by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in October 2023.
$$45 million for medicaid kickback settlement
Gilead Sciences Inc, defendant in settlement; Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General who initiated legal action
Tarrant County Commissioner Matt Krause and Fort Worth City Council member Elizabeth Beck disagreed over whether local or state governments should regulate data centers during a panel at the Fort Worth Report's 2026 Growth Summit. Krause favored state regulation with local input; Beck argued Fort Worth should act now using its home-rule authority.
Matt Krause, Tarrant County Commissioner; Elizabeth Beck, Fort Worth City Council member; Adrian Shelley, Public Citizen Texas director and 1 more
Texas Railroad Commissioner Wayne Christian endorsed U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright's position that data center developers, not ratepayers, should fund the power infrastructure their facilities require. Christian said existing infrastructure should be prioritized and urged lawmakers to let communities decide whether to host data centers.
$$50 million for department of Energy investment in Texas grid resilience
Wayne Christian, Texas Railroad Commissioner; Chris Wright, U.S. Energy Secretary; Texas Legislature, State lawmakers