Mosque behind proposed Muslim community in rural Texas ordered to stop illegally operating funeral home
Move comes after Gov. Greg Abbott cites 'serious legal issues' with Plano Islamic center plans
A mosque behind a proposed Muslim community development in rural Texas is now under investigation by state authorities for allegedly operating a funeral home without a license.
The East Plano Islamic Center (EPIC), located about 20 miles north of Dallas, is the mosque behind the ambitious EPIC City and EPIC Ranches project that aims to establish a self-sustaining neighborhood approximately 40 miles northeast of Dallas, featuring over 1,000 homes, a mosque, Islamic schools, clinics, stores, parks, and a nursing home on a 402-acre site spanning Collin and Hunt Counties.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Wednesday that the Texas Funeral Service Commission (TFSC), which oversees all funeral operations in the state, sent a cease-and-desist letter ordering the EPIC compound to immediately stop all illegal funeral service operations. While details were scant, the letter addressed to EPIC from TFSC Executive Director Scott Bingaman accused the Islamic center of "operating as a funeral home without an establishment license" in violation of state law.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"Effective immediately, you are ordered to cease and desist funeral service operations," wrote Bingaman, who added the agency is making a criminal referral to the Collin County District Attorney's office.
"Here in Texas, we uphold the rule of law,” said Abbott. "The group behind the proposed East Plano Islamic Center compound in Collin County is knowingly breaking state law in many ways, including by operating a funeral home without a license. This is a crime, and it will not be tolerated. Texas will continue to defend our communities from any threats posed by EPIC City."
Earlier this week, Abbott announced that a dozen state agencies are investigating potential illegal activities taking place at EPIC.
The governor took to X on Monday to voice concerns about the development, stating, “The proposed EPIC compound in Collin [County] has serious legal issues. A dozen state agencies are investigating it, the Attorney General will look into it, and legislators are considering laws to restrict it, as well as laws to prevent foreign adversaries from buying land in Texas.”
The announcement signals a robust state response, involving multiple agencies and Attorney General Ken Paxton, to scrutinize the project’s legal standing and implications.
Abbott’s comments are the latest response from the governor’s office following his warning in February that “Sharia law is not allowed in Texas” in response to reports about the proposed development in rural North Texas.
He further warned against the creation of “Sharia cities” or “no-go zones,” suggesting the development could imply exclusionary practices. “To be clear, Sharia law is not allowed in Texas. Nor are Sharia cities. Nor are ‘no go zones’ which this project seems to imply,” Abbott wrote. “Bottom line: The project as proposed in the video is not allowed in Texas.”
In response, an X account named Epic Ranches replied, “Governor Abbott, our vision is to build a diverse, safe, and inclusive community — one in which people of every background, faith, and culture can live together in harmony. It should go without saying that our community, like any other in this great state, will follow all local, state, and federal laws. We would love for you to see the site and learn about our project over some Hutchins BBQ.”
With an estimated Muslim population of over 313,000, Texas has one of the largest Muslim communities in the U.S., with nearly 150,000 Muslim residents in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.
Located in the Dallas suburb of Plano, EPIC opened in July 2015 as a nonprofit “formed exclusively for educational, religious, and social purposes” and bills itself as a “a multi-ethnic, multi-racial, multi-lingual, non-sectarian, diverse, and open community committed to full and equal participation and involvement of men and women who are community members of EPIC and subscribe to accept its rules, regulations, and procedures.”
Well known among the Muslim community and with millions of followers on social media, Qadhi, who also studied at the Islamic University of Madinah in Saudi Arabia, and at Yale University, has played a key role in the promotion of the EPIC project: he’s said the latest offering, EPIC Ranches, is a “limited time opportunity” that aims to “change the entire dawah scene by showing the world what it means to be a Muslim living in the West.”
In Islam, dawah is described by the Christian apologetics website Got Questions as the “Islamic equivalent" to Christian evangelism.
