With the surge of data centers and other developments in Texas and around the country, Texas’ chief agriculture official is proposing a plan to secure the future of the state’s farms and ranches.
Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller has recommended that state, or even federal, lawmakers consider creating a tax incentive that could redirect construction of developments, infrastructure, and data centers away from prime agricultural land. This would protect not only agricultural land crucial for food production but also critical water sources.
Miller proposed that the plan be modeled similarly to opportunity zones, giving tax breaks to encourage development growth in certain areas.
Miller’s idea is that areas such as marginal land, brownfields, and arid regions that are not well suited for agricultural production would receive property and other state tax incentives, encouraging developers to focus on these less desirable areas and leave prime farmland for food production.
“The unchecked spread of data centers onto prime farm and ranchland is a real and growing threat to our food supply,” said Miller. “But America also needs data, innovation, and technology infrastructure to stay competitive. America will continue to lead the world in both agricultural production and technology innovation, but only if we do it the right way.”
