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New data centers are being paused in Texas, as Greg Abbott, the 48th Governor of Texas, announced the state is moving to implement stricter operational requirements on incoming facilities amid an ongoing wave of corporate relocations.
In a statement on X, the governor declared that new data centers must now disclose their plans to "pay their own way, provide their own power, reuse their own water, reduce the cost of electricity, and avoid disturbing local neighborhoods." Addressing the broader economic landscape in a blog post in April of this year, Abbott connected the regulatory shift to a multi-year influx of out-of-state businesses. "Since 2020, more than 100 companies have relocated to Texas. A whopping 40 per cent of them are fleeing California," Abbott said. "And of the ten Fortune 500 companies that have moved to Texas in the last six years, eight of them are from our rival in the West," he added. Abbott noted that these corporate moves accounted for a portion of the nearly 330 corporate headquarters attracted to Texas during his administration, attributing the trend to state policy choices. "This is no accident," Abbott said. The migration included firms across financial services, technology, and energy. Corporations such as Charles Schwab, Tesla, Public Storage, HP, X, Chevron, and John Paul Mitchell moved to Texas after 2020. Oracle shifted its corporate headquarters to Austin in 2020, ending a four-decade tenure in Silicon Valley, while brokerage giant CBRE moved from Los Angeles to Dallas that same year. AECOM, a Fortune 500 construction firm, announced its relocation from Los Angeles to Dallas in 2021. Abbott stated that low taxes and regulatory environments supported this influx. "These corporations realized what all Texas business owners large and small already know - Texas actually wants you to succeed," Abbott added. "No personal or corporate income taxes, easy business filing processes, and incentive-backed grants empower wearied companies to make the cross-country move with no regret." The movement continued into recent years. Elon Musk moved Tesla's headquarters to Austin in 2021, later announcing the relocation of SpaceX and X from California in July 2024. Chevron announced in August 2024 that its headquarters would shift from San Ramon, California, to Houston. In February, Yum! Brands announced two headquarters locations in Texas and California, while maintaining corporate offices in Kentucky. On February 12, the New York Stock Exchange announced it would shift its Chicago branch to Dallas. The Governor mentioned that Site Selection Magazine ranked Texas as the top state for doing business in 2025 after it attracted over 1,400 location and expansion projects. "In Texas, we have room to grow, with plenty of land, strategic port access, and more airports than any other state," Abbott said. "Texas is where the future of global business and trade is being built," he added. (ANI)
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