State representative urges guardrails and park buffers for hyperscale data centers

State Representative Helen Kermlin urged Cleburne leaders on July 6 to push for statewide guardrails on hyperscale data centers, saying local communities need more authority and interagency transparency to protect groundwater, farmland and ratepayers.

"Protecting our natural resources must be a part of our conversation going forward," Kermlin said, describing constituent concerns about impacts on aquifers, the electric grid, roads and agricultural land. She said her office plans to file two bills in the upcoming legislative session: one to establish limits and transparency requirements for hyperscale projects and a second to create a five‑mile buffer around Texas state parks.

Kermlin cited Johnson County's recent resolution asking for a pause on large data‑center permitting and said her proposals would increase local input and require state agencies — the Public Utility Commission, Texas Water Development Board and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality — to share permitting information. She noted one proposed project near Cleburne could use as much as 1,800 acres, with options up to 9,000 acres when including related parcels.

Why it matters: Council members and residents have raised alarms about long‑term water use, strain on roads and electric infrastructure, and the effects of concentrated development. Kermlin framed the bills as an attempt to balance property rights with protection of shared, nonrenewable resources.

Kermlin invited local officials and experts to offer suggestions for the legislation and said she is working with engineers, groundwater experts, landowners and state agencies to refine the proposals before filing.