Plano Daily Local Headlines: DART Deal, AT&T HQ Incentives, SB 12 Pause

City Hall: DART deal, May vote scrapped

Plano leaders voted Monday night, Feb. 23, to approve a new funding agreement with Dallas Area Rapid Transit and to cancel the May 2 election that would have asked voters whether Plano should leave the system. City leaders framed the decision as a negotiated reset: a promise of more predictable returns for the city, paired with a regional governance and funding compromise that still needs to be adopted across DART’s member cities.

For riders, the immediate takeaway is stability: service planning continues under membership rather than heading into a months-long exit campaign. For taxpayers, the next chapter is how the new agreement is implemented and measured over time.

Business: Plano OKs record incentives for AT&T’s future HQ

In the same Feb. 23 meeting, council approved what’s been described as the largest private-employer incentive package in the city’s history: $20 million in incentives plus a long-term property tax rebate tied to AT&T’s planned global headquarters redevelopment in the Legacy area.

The agreement sets benchmarks, including a minimum construction investment of $1.35 billion and at least 2 million square feet of office, amenity and retail space, with long-term job and occupancy commitments. The deal is structured so incentives are tied to performance milestones rather than paid up front.

Schools: Court order pauses parts of Texas SB 12 for Plano ISD

A federal judge issued an order that temporarily blocks Plano ISD from enforcing several specific sections of Texas Senate Bill 12, a sweeping law that reshaped rules around DEI duties, instruction limits, student clubs and more. The pause applies to Plano ISD along with two other large districts, while the rest of the law remains in effect statewide.

Families may see districts proceed cautiously while legal challenges continue, with some campus practices potentially reverting to prior guidance in the areas covered by the court order.

Sources

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/transportation/2026/02/23/plano-council-votes-to-cancel-election-to-leave-dart-after-agreeing-to-compromise/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/plano-city-council-approves-dart-035756333.html
https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/plano-calls-off-vote-to-exit-dart-partnership-40647503/
https://www.dallasnews.com/business/real-estate/2026/02/23/plano-approves-largest-incentive-package-in-its-history-to-secure-att-hq/
https://www.click2houston.com/news/politics/2026/02/22/judge-pauses-sb-12-what-changes-for-houston-isd-and-katy-isd/