The data center fight in Hays County, Texas
As of October 1, 2026, Hays County, Texas has a data center moratorium in force (action taken 2026; documented end date 2026-12-31).
Status is derived, not stored — a pause with a documented end date flips to Expired on its own — and the source is right next to the claim.
Status today
Resolution pausing review of high-water-use and large industrial projects in unincorporated areas through Dec 31, 2026. Weaker than the moratorium first proposed: it raises scrutiny and halts development agreements rather than blocking projects outright
SourceNews
read 2026-08-04
An expiry date is the earliest a pause could have ended — extensions are common, so confirm with the clerk before citing it.
Where the decision gets made
Commissioners Court — County budget, roads and development in the unincorporated county across four precincts, presided over by the County Judge. Hays enacted a data center moratorium (through Dec 31, 2026); San Marcos, the county seat, was the first Texas city to ban data centers.
Meets: Tuesdays 9:00 a.m.
Where: Hays County Historic Courthouse, 111 E. San Antonio St., San Marcos, TX 78666 (offices at 712 South Stagecoach Trail)
Public comment: Commissioners Court meets Tuesday mornings; see the county's agenda portal for the public-comment process.
512-393-7779 · website
Read from the official page on 2026-08-07. Meeting details change — confirm before you go.
Who votes on it
| Name | Role | Phone | Recorded stance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ruben Becerra | County Judge (presides) | — | 512-393-7779 | not recorded |
| Debbie Ingalsbe | Commissioner | — | 512-393-2243 | not recorded |
| Michelle Cohen | Commissioner | — | — | not recorded |
| Morgan Hammer | Commissioner | — | — | not recorded |
| Walt Smith | Commissioner | — | 512-858-7268 | not recorded |
From the locality's own roster page; "not recorded" means no public statement is on file, not neutrality.
What to do next
- Questions to ask at the hearing — force specific answers onto the record.
- Estimate the impact — electricity, water, and rate pressure for any facility size in Texas.
- Model CBA clauses — copy-paste language communities have actually won.
- Texas briefing — rates, grid carbon, PUC contacts, and every fight in the state.
Nearby in Texas
- San Marcos (13 mi) — Enactedno end date — permanent
- Texas (Abbott directive) (23 mi) — Enactedno fixed end — runs until a condition is met
- Austin (23 mi) — Proposedterm not documented
- San Antonio (52 mi) — Rejectedterm not documented
- Milam County (84 mi) — Enactedterm not documented
- Austin County (105 mi) — Enactedterm not documented
- Hill County (146 mi) — Rescindedterm not documented
- Corpus Christi (160 mi) — Proposedterm not documented
All 23 tracked actions in Texas are on the state page.
As of August 2026 (2m ago) · changes weekly — re-check before citing
Illustrative rather than exhaustive — dozens of localities churn weekly, and this tracks the ones we have read a source for. **Each row carries its own provenance.** Rows showing a verification date link to the ordinance, the enacting body's own page, or a datable report of the vote, and were read on that date. Rows marked *unverified* came from bulk compilation and have not been checked against a primary source — the locality, the year, and the status may all be off. Verify one of those with the town clerk before citing it as precedent. **Expiry is derived, not asserted.** A row with a documented end date flips to *Expired* on its own once that date passes. A time-limited moratorium whose start date was never documented keeps showing as enacted — that is a known gap, not a claim that it is still in force. Moratoriums are also routinely extended, so an expiry date is the earliest it could have ended, not proof that it did.
Part of the U.S. data center moratorium tracker — open data, CC BY 4.0.