Local resistance is emerging in Texas over AI data centers, marking an unusual response in a state better known for courting big corporate projects with a light regulatory touch.
What's happening?
According to a report from the Texas Standard, new polling data from the University of Texas' Texas Politics Project shows that most Texans said they would not want a data center built in their own community.
The finding comes as Texas is becoming a major hub for the infrastructure that powers artificial intelligence.
James Henson, co-director of the University of Texas' Texas Politics Project, told the Texas Standard that the skepticism appears to be broader than some might assume.
"Something is changing out there, at least around this issue, and I think one is tempted to think that this is all anti-development liberals or Democrats or something like that," Henson said.
He continued: "Republicans are split — 43% of Republicans oppose this, 42% support. And the opposition is centered in the base of Republican support, in rural areas for 62% opposing. There's something really going on here."
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Views of AI itself were also more negative than positive. In another poll cited by Texas Standard, 49% of Texans said they think AI will hurt the economy, compared with 29% who said they expect it to help.
Why does it matter?
Texas leaders have aggressively promoted the state as a hub for AI growth.
As Texas Standard reported, in November, Governor Greg Abbott described Texas as an AI "epicenter," and Google announced a $40 billion investment in the state through its "Investing in America" initiative.
However, data centers are not simply office buildings full of servers. They can consume massive amounts of electricity and water, generate noise, and reshape nearby communities.
Pushback has centered on immediate quality-of-life effects and, as Henson told the Texas Standard, "lots of environmental concerns about water and resource use."
AI is also closely tied to the power grid. On one hand, AI tools can help utilities forecast demand, improve grid reliability, and optimize clean energy systems such as wind, solar, and battery storage.
On the other hand, the computing power needed to run AI can dramatically increase electricity demand, strain local infrastructure, and potentially shift costs onto households through higher bills or public subsidies.
There are also wider concerns beyond energy use, including misuse, security issues, and unintended social or economic consequences. Those risks raise questions about who benefits and who pays.
What's being done?
Texas lawmakers are beginning to ask that question more openly.
The tax breaks are one area they are looking at. As Texas Standard reported, incentives approved for data centers in 2025 are projected by the comptroller's office to wipe out about $3.2 billion in state revenue over the next two years, and those incentives are now being reconsidered ahead of next year's session.
Abbott has also signaled a tougher approach. In a June 10 press release, as cited by the Texas Standard, he told state utility regulators to protect Texan ratepayers from bearing data center costs.
"Data centers must operate in ways that reduce costs for residential electricity customers, do not drain water needed for our communities, and take into consideration the needs of our neighborhoods," Abbott said.
The release also said Abbott will work with lawmakers on water-saving cooling rules, fuller reporting of electricity and water use, an end to outdated tax incentives, and protections such as setbacks and noise reduction.
In a state that has long embraced growth, Texas may be rethinking what kinds of development it wants next.
Hensen told the Texas Standard that the poll could suggest a larger trend.
"I think it's hard not to see this as a very interesting development in a state that has traditionally been so open to growth, but in the last few years has become more skeptical after a couple of decades of really rapid and really broad growth in the state," he told the outlet.
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