⭐ Morning Briefing — October 20, 2026

(Tuesday, October 20, 2026)

Top Story: Two watchdog groups found 35 TCEQ actions on data center permits since Gov. Abbott's Sept. 21 "pause," including expedited reviews of gas plants filed in October. Abbott's office and TCEQ say not a single permit has been approved.

📰 Today's News

1. 📑 Watchdogs Count 35 TCEQ Permitting Actions Since Abbott's Data Center Pause; State Says None Were Approvals

FracTracker Alliance and Public Citizen released an analysis Monday of TCEQ's public records and held a press conference on it. They counted 35 permitting actions on data center projects after Abbott's Sept. 21 letter telling the agency "to halt all permits sought by data centers," Inside Climate News reported. By their tally, TCEQ has fast-tracked or assigned engineers to 14 permits, approved stormwater coverage for 11, certified emissions estimates for seven and issued public notice for three.
On Sept. 22, the day after the letter, TCEQ mailed notices of preliminary approval to three projects: NRG's Prairie Energy Center, VoltaGrid's ABI-1 power plant and Nexus's self-powered data center in Hubbard. Comment periods on two of them opened in the following days, ICN reported.
404 Media reported that 12 of the 14 gas plant and generator applications were filed in October and that eight got TCEQ's expedited review. One was an air permit for engines and turbines to power a data center in Irving, submitted Oct. 6, with an engineer's initial review finished two days later. ICN also cited a generator application for Edged Energy in Dallas, received Oct. 6 and reviewed Oct. 9.
Construction stormwater coverage was granted after the pause for sites including Caldwell Valley Technology Park, Crusoe's Abilene campus and EdgeConneX's Cedar Creek campus (ICN), and for sites in Abilene, Barstow and Royse City (404 Media). FracTracker's Sam Law explained that these come from a notice of intent filed under an existing statewide general permit. In unincorporated areas with no zoning, he said, that can be the last approval a site needs before grading begins.
Abbott press secretary Andrew Mahaleris told 404 Media that "no permits have been approved." TCEQ said it has issued no data center permits and is following the directive. When 404 Media asked about the stormwater entries marked "approved," the governor's office sent the question to TCEQ. The Lufkin Daily News and San Antonio Current also covered the report.

Today's Signal: Both sides can be right, which is the problem. TCEQ can say it hasn't issued a final permit while it keeps reviewing applications, certifying emissions estimates and granting general stormwater coverage. Monday was also the due date for TCEQ's compliance report to the governor, and we found no sign the report has been made public. Without it, these watchdog counts are the only public measure of what the pause covers.

2. 🏗️ Stack and PowerHouse File New DFW Buildings With the State

Data Center Dynamics reported Monday that SI DFW02CAMPUS LLC, an affiliate that shares an address with Stack Infrastructure, filed this month with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation for DFW02B. It's a $540 million, 350,045-square-foot, two-story data center and office at 1130 E. Belt Line Road in Lancaster. Construction is planned from March 2027 to December 2028.
A Stack brochure describes the DFW02 campus as 500 MW on 193 acres in South Dallas, with up to five buildings and an on-site substation. DFW02B would supply 54 MW. The first building, DFW02A, filed in January 2025, is scheduled for completion in March 2027.
In the same report, AREP-owned PowerHouse filed with TDLR, through Circle T Owner LP, for DAL130 at the Circle T Ranch site at 13572 N. Main Street in Westlake, Tarrant County. The 224,150-square-foot, $83 million building would start in December 2026 and finish in June 2027. Up to four buildings totaling 300 MW have been reported for the site. PowerHouse told the Dallas Morning News the project "remains in the planning and review process" and is subject to approvals.
The Dallas Business Journal's new ranking of North Texas economic development agencies, published Monday, puts Lancaster first: $11.0 billion in 2025 deal value from six deals, on a $1.2 million annual budget. The Journal credits data center development for the city's rise.

Today's Signal: TDLR building filings are moving while TCEQ's pause is in the news. Lancaster's $11 billion year from six deals on a $1.2 million budget shows how much money a small Dallas County suburb can bring in once it becomes a data center cluster. In Westlake, PowerHouse's own statement says the Circle T building still needs approvals.

3. 📉 Texas Builders Feel the CoreWeave Selloff: Galaxy Down 30%, Fermi Target Cut

Galaxy Digital shares have fallen about 30% over two weeks on worries about CoreWeave's debt, Benzinga reported Monday, citing The Block. CoreWeave is the only contracted tenant for the first 800 MW of gross power capacity at Galaxy's Helios AI campus in West Texas, and it reported $35.6 billion in debt outstanding at the end of June.
StoneX kept a Buy rating and a $57 target on Galaxy, arguing the market is undervaluing the data center business. Galaxy delivered its first 133 MW of critical IT load in July under a 15-year CoreWeave lease covering 526 MW across three phases, and it has bought land for a second Texas campus in McGregor. A Reuters market note carried by the Star-Telegram said CoreWeave fell 25% last week.
Fermi, which is developing a nuclear-anchored power and data center campus in the Texas Panhandle, fell 4.4% to $3.02 Monday after Cantor Fitzgerald cut its target from $12 to $8 while keeping an overweight rating, MarketBeat reported. An SEC filing shows major shareholder Toby Neugebauer sold 1,297,200 shares on Oct. 14 at an average of $3.15, about $4.1 million.

Today's Signal: Two big Texas campuses are now tied to the stock market. Helios depends on one heavily indebted tenant, and Fermi trades at about $3 a share. If AI financing tightens, a project can stall from lack of money even if the state approves every permit.

4. 🔧 DFW's Data Center Labor Market: Electrician Applications Jump Tenfold as Wesco Moves Assembly Off-Site

Applications to the North Texas Electrical Training Center in Grand Prairie are up to about 700 a month, from 60 to 70 a few years ago, WFAA reported Monday night. Training director Jason Allen said data centers are the main driver. The program now gets about 10 times more applicants than it has spots, and Allen wants to expand.
Apprentice pay starts at $20.33 an hour plus benefits. Allen said some contractors pay time-and-a-half or double time on data center jobs. The apprenticeship runs four years and requires 8,000 hours on the job.
Separately, Wesco International has opened its first technology deployment center in Irving, Distribution Strategy Group reported. Wesco's job postings describe assembling racks and cabinets, installing servers, switches, power distribution units and cable management, and testing finished assemblies before shipping. The company reported second-quarter data center sales of $1.5 billion, up about 45% from a year earlier.

Today's Signal: The work is real, but it's split. Construction is drawing electricians faster than DFW can train them, while companies like Wesco do more of the equipment assembly in factories instead of at each site. The lasting local jobs depend on which part of the work stays on site after construction ends.

5. 🗳️ The Ag Commissioner Race Becomes Another Vote on Data Centers

Texas Standard reported Monday that Democrat Clayton Tucker has made slowing data center development a centerpiece of his campaign for agriculture commissioner. He proposes independent "agricultural impact studies" for any new data center. Republican Nate Sheets wants local governments to have more tools to regulate data centers and wants fewer tax abatements for them.
On the first day of early voting, outgoing Commissioner Sid Miller posted an essay discouraging votes for Sheets, who beat him in the March primary, the Texas Tribune reported. Miller called Sheets' data center positions "weak" and "vague" and said Sheets hasn't joined Miller and Tucker's call for a moratorium. He praised Tucker but told the Tribune, "I have not endorsed in that race."
Sheets answered on X, calling Miller the most corrupt figure in Texas government and Miller's criticism a "badge of honor."
In an Austin Monthly feature published Monday, Burnet County landowner Aaron Games told a House committee in August that he has voted straight-ticket Republican all his life but is "about to" vote for a Democrat. He was talking about Oncor transmission lines proposed across his land to serve data centers.

Today's Signal: Both candidates for agriculture commissioner support more checks on data centers. The dividing line Miller is pushing is a moratorium: he and Tucker want one, and Sheets offers local control and fewer tax breaks. A Republican incumbent now attacking his own party's nominee for being too soft on data centers shows how far the issue has moved.

We found no new PUC large-load docket actions, no new zoning votes in the eight DFW-area counties we track, no new behind-the-meter generation announcements and no new noise or nuisance lawsuits.

📍 Today's Watch List

Whether TCEQ's Oct. 19 compliance report to the governor is released, whether it addresses the 35 actions FracTracker and Public Citizen counted, and whether TCEQ explains why stormwater notices of intent show as "approved."
The comment periods and hearings on the NRG Prairie, VoltaGrid ABI-1 and Nexus Hubbard projects, including the Abilene gas plant hearing residents fought to get.
How the expedited air permits for the Irving and Dallas generator projects proceed while the pause is in place.
Lancaster: further TDLR or city filings for the other DFW02 buildings. Westlake: any town action on PowerHouse's Circle T plans before the planned December start.
Galaxy and CoreWeave: any change to the Helios lease or to CoreWeave's financing. Fermi: any further insider sales.
Ag commissioner and governor races through Election Day, Nov. 3. Early voting continues.
Denton's Oct. 27 moratorium hearing.
ERCOT's Dec. 10 audit reports and the PUC's Dec. 17 open meeting. Nothing material is expected there before December.