Abbott took about $9M from data-center donors while shaping their rules
Original title: Greg Abbott Took $9M from Data-Center Donors. Now He Regulates Them
The Texas Tribune counts roughly $4.9 million from direct data-center ties and $4.1 million from adjacent AI and equipment donors since July 2025.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott paused data-center grid approvals and called for ending a major industry tax break while campaign filings show about $9 million in data-center-related contributions since July 2025, about 13% of his fundraising in that period. The 2027 session is expected to cover grid connections, water use, infrastructure costs, and the sales-tax exemption. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, House Speaker Dustin Burrows, Comptroller Don Huffines, and a Meta-backed PAC also took industry-linked money. Abbott’s campaign says centers must pay their own costs and calls the analysis manufactured controversy; the reporting does not prove a donation changed a decision.
Unconfirmed: The Tribune does not show that any contribution caused a specific regulatory decision, and a rival’s $20 million figure used a wider donor definition.
- Joe Gebbia gave $1.5 million, the largest single donation in the analysis.
- Rhett Bennett and Black Mountain gave a combined $1 million; Elon Musk gave $500,000.
- Donors sent $2.8 million after the August approval pause, the cycle’s largest monthly industry total.
- Dan Patrick received more than $1.6 million; Dustin Burrows at least $377,500.
- A rival’s $20 million claim used a broader donor definition than the Tribune’s.
- Organizations
- MetaBlack Mountain
- Countries
- United States
From the original article
3 min read at gadgetreview.com
Texas leaders shaping data-center grid and water rules collected millions from the very companies they now oversee Greg Abbott paused data-center grid approvals and called for ending the industry’s major tax break. He cast himself as the protector of Texas communities from an industry straining the grid and raising concerns about water consumption across the state.
By robtherobber · gadgetreview.com
A short excerpt; the article and its images belong to the publisher. Summary, key facts and assessment above are AI-written from the article and can be wrong.