Space Exploration Technologies has filed suit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Grimes County over a public records request.
The suit filed Tuesday before Travis County Judge Aurora Martinez Jones focuses on four Texas Public Information Act requests. SpaceX claims one request was withdrawn before a ruling was issued, and another request did not include any documents regarding the company.
The requests allegedly implicating SpaceX’s confidential information were submitted by two requestors, Vanessa Burzynski and Marie Egyed, on behalf of Grimes County Citizens for Responsible Development.
The company plans to deploy AI data centers in space. The plan has led SpaceX to expand into advanced semiconductor and AI-hardware manufacturing. In connection with the expansion, SpaceX, in collaboration with Tesla, has proposed its Terafab semiconductor and AI-hardware manufacturing facility at a site in Grimes County.
In May, the company submitted an application for a tax abatement for the facility. SpaceX submitted the application and exchanged confidential term proposals and negotiating correspondence with the county and its counsel and consultants, portions of which were marked confidential, in the course of confidential economic development negotiations. The company’s expectation is that the county would protect information designated as confidential, assert applicable exceptions to its release, and notify SpaceX of any public-information request so that SpaceX could assert its own exceptions.
Days after the application was submitted with the county, Burzynski submitted a public records request for the application. A month later, Egyed requested any application submitted by SpaceX, records concerning the proposed reinvestment zone, and communications among the county, its counsel and consultants, and SpaceX.
The county didn’t notify SpaceX of the requests until July. The company submitted written objections to the attorney general about releasing its confidential information.
The attorney general issued a ruling that concluded the county must release a public meeting agenda.
“Having declined to consider third-party exceptions when raised by the County precisely because they belong to third parties, the Attorney General failed to consider those same exceptions when raised by the third party itself,” the petition reads. “The Ruling thus orders the release of SpaceX’s confidential information without considering SpaceX’s demonstrated bases for withholding it.”
SpaceX is seeking declaratory and injunctive relief.
Bill Cobb and Alexa Gervasi of Cobb & Gervasi are representing SpaceX.
Counsel for Paxton and Grimes County have not filed appearances at this time.
The case number is D-1-GN-26-008509.