This story was originally published by The Texas Tribune and supported by the Pulitzer Center.
Texas will lose out on $3.2 billion in sales tax revenue over the next two years thanks to an exemption for the state’s booming data center industry, according to the comptroller’s office.
That figure is likely a vast underestimate given the explosion of new facilities being built, but already makes the tax break one of the state’s costliest incentive programs and soon to be the most expensive of its kind in the nation.
Lawmakers, who will meet in January for the next legislative session, say they are considering proposals to either limit the scope of the tax break or get rid of it altogether.
“These new numbers are extremely concerning, and I will say they’re unsustainable,” said state Senator Joan Huffman, chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, in an interview with The Texas Tribune. “I plan to look at filing legislation to either repeal the exemption or take a very close look a... Read more
