Texas Gov. Threatens to Pull Airport Funds Over Washing Stations

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is threatening to withdraw state grant funding from two of the state’s busiest airports over religious accommodation spaces connected to Islamic prayer practices — a move that has already led one major airport to abandon plans for a Muslim foot-washing station.

Abbott said Friday that Texas officials would review grants awarded to entities at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, with the possibility of revoking current funding and blocking future state support.

The governor also said he had referred both airports to the US Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration for investigation.

‘Government-owned airports cannot favor one religion over all others,’ the Republican wrote on X while announcing the state review.

Abbott specifically targeted a Dallas-Fort Worth proposal to add an ablution facility — a wash area used by Muslims to rinse their hands and feet before prayer — calling the plan ‘illegal.’

‘Texas will not allow illegal religious discrimination at taxpayer-funded facilities,’ Abbott declared.

The governor, who has recently renewed demands for Texas lawmakers to ban Sharia law, laid out similar objections in a letter to North Texas Airport’s CEO Christopher McLaughlin.

In the letter, Abbott claimed the ablution facilities ‘appear designed to single out one subset of the population for special treatment based on religion.’ He also pointed to the wash station at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, which he said is connected to a prayer room containing copies of the Quran, prayer rugs, prayer beads and a turban.

‘I am unaware of either airport installing standalone facilities to meet the particular needs of the many other religious groups represented across Texas,’ he noted. 

‘Both the federal and state constitutions prohibit government from facilitating this sort of discrimination,’ Abbott continued. ‘Just as the government cannot favor the secular over the sacred, it also cannot favor one religious view over all others.’

He also noted that the airports are owned by the government.

‘It was unlawful to use city-owned property to publicly advertise a Muslim-only event at a waterpark,’ Abbott wrote, referring to a canceled plan in the city of Grand Prairie to host an Eid Al-Adha event at a city-owned waterpark.

‘It is also unlawful to use city-owned property to publicly advertise a Muslim-only washing station,’ he added, noting that recipients of state grants must certify compliance with laws prohibiting discrimination.

In a separate letter to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Abbott asked the DOT and the FAA to ‘take appropriate corrective action.’

‘I look forward to working with you to ensure that these airports conform their facilities to constitutional requirements,’ the governor wrote.

But just hours after receiving the letter, officials at Dallas-Fort Worth announced they were scrapping their plan to install an ablution facility at Terminal D.

‘DFW was in the process of evaluating an internal proposal to add a set of ablution washing stations on the pre-security side of Terminal D, the international terminal,’ a spokesperson for the airport told Fox News.

‘Like all proposed projects, the airport ultimately considers the operational benefits, customer service impacts, operation of risks and costs before approving them,’ the spokesperson said.

‘While that evaluation was planned, the airport accelerated its review due to elevated public interest this week and has determined not to proceed with the project as it would not deliver the originally anticipated operational benefits.’

The project had been officially registered with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation on July 31.

The filing initially listed the project as being privately-funded, estimated its cost at $300,000 and indicated construction on the facility would be completed by the end of the year.

But airport officials have since claimed those details were the result of administrative errors by the airport’s outside design firm, as they stressed that the project had not received a final approval.

‘While the estimate noted was $300,000, that was a preliminary high estimate, and we expect the project, if it were approved to proceed, would cost closer to $120,000,’ a spokesperson previously told Fox.

They then went on to claim that the design firm mistakenly selected ‘private funding’ when submitting the regulatory filing.

‘That was an error and it should have indicated that airport funds would be used to pay for the work like all our projects,’ the spokesperson said, noting that the airport does not use taxpayer dollars for airport operations – and instead relies on revenue streams, including parking and concessions.

Under the proposal for the washing stations at Dallas-Fort Worth, airport officials would provide a dedicated space in the public airport bathrooms for Muslims to wash their feet before prayer, an Islamic tradition known as Wadu. 

The project was also intended to prevent airport passengers from using regular sinks for the same purpose, which had led to complaints of unhygienic conditions and water on the floor. 

George Bush Intercontinental Airport has had an ablution facility since 2024, when airport officials said ‘the calming and welcoming prayer room provides another option for passengers of all faiths and beliefs.’

Washing facilities and interfaith spaces also exist at other major US airports, including Chicago O’Hare.

The Daily Mail has reached out to officials at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, the Houston Airport System and the DOT for comment.