The latest Texas Railroad Commission news from The Texas Tribune.
Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams will resign this week, allowing him to work full time on a race for U.S. Senate — and to avoid a potentially bruising legislative fight over the future of his agency. Full Story
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The Sunset Advisory Commission met today and recommended that the Railroad Commission be renamed the Oil and Gas Commission, and that its top structure shrink from three elected commissioners to one. Full Story
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Every politician needs a villain. George W. Bush had Saddam Hussein; Barack Obama had George W. Bush. Gov. Rick Perry has the EPA., which has had the audacity to order Texas to do more to clean its air. Full Story
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Texas' three Railroad Commissioners today proposed ways to restructure and rename their commission in hearings today in the Capitol. Full Story
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Members of the Texas Railroad Commission have become increasingly reliant on large campaign donations in the last decade, especially from industries they regulate, according to a new report to be issued today by Public Citizen's Texas office. Full Story
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Energy is never far from the agenda at the Legislature. This year, Sunset Advisory Commission reviews of oil and gas and electricity regulators will keep the sector in the spotlight, as will renewed clamor for legislation — however unlikely to happen in a tough budget environment — to aid clean energy. Full Story
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The tussle between Texas and federal environmental regulators is heating up in yet another arena — natural gas drilling — after the EPA ordered a gas company to act to come to the aid of two North Texas homes with contaminated wells. Texas Railroad Commissioners fired back, calling the EPA's move "premature" and "grandstanding." Full Story
There are lily pads and launch pads in Texas government, and the Railroad Commission is a launch pad. Being a railroad commissioner is less an end than a means — a way to propel yourself into a better, higher-profile and more powerful job. Which is why a serious reform effort is afoot. Full Story
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The Sunset Advisory Commission's staff report on the Railroad Commission, released today, recommends getting rid of the agency and replacing it with a similar entity headed by five part-time gubernatorial appointees. Full Story
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Republican Gov. Rick Perry leads his Democratic challenger, Bill White by 10 points — 50 percent to 40 percent — in the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll. Libertarian Kathie Glass has the support of 8 percent of respondents; Deb Shafto of the Green Party gets 2 percent. In the last UT/TT poll, conducted in early September, Perry led by 6 points, 39 percent to 33 percent. In a red state in a red year, GOP incumbents in other statewide races are beating their Democratic opponents by between 13 points and 20 points, the new poll found. Full Story
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Stiles' and Torres' three-parter on the changing Texas political map, Ramsey on questions about Brian Birdwell's voting history and residency, Aguilar on the Obama administration's immigration crackdown, Reed on hospitals that won't induce early labor, Stiles on what Troy Fraser left off his financial disclosure form, the latest installment of Hu's Face-Off video debate series, Grissom on the problem-plagued Driver Responsibility Program, Galbraith on the controversy over fracking and M. Smith's interview with former Texas Supreme Court Justice Harriet O'Neill: The best of our best from July 26 to 30, 2010. Full Story
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The two men battling for a spot on the Texas Railroad Commission go head-to-head — virtually — in the latest installment of our Face-Off video series. Watch as political novice and certified public accountant David Porter, a Midland Republican, debates Democrat Jeff Weems, an oil and gas attorney from Houston, on their respective qualifications for the job, whether there are enough pipeline inspectors and and the proper balance between environmental regulation and economic growth. Full Story
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Anger and fear were on display at a public meeting the Environmental Protection Agency convened in Fort Worth to discuss a natural gas drilling technique called hydraulic fracturing. Full Story
A Texas Railroad Commissioner is proposing to replace steel natural gas pipes with plastic. Mose Buchele of KUT News reports. Full Story
Railroad Commission Chairman Victor Carrillo, a seven-year incumbent with a background in the industry he regulates, got trounced in the GOP primary on Tuesday by an unknown, David Porter, who spent little money on the race. He's not the only one who thinks his Hispanic surname cost him his job. Full Story
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"Early polling showed that the typical GOP primary voter has very little info about the position of Railroad Commissioner, what we do, or who my opponent or I were. Given the choice between “Porter” and “Carrillo” — unfortunately, the Hispanic-surname was a serious setback from which I could never recover." Full Story
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An upset seems likely if not certain in the Republican primary for Railroad Commissioner. Victor Carrillo, the incumbent, is trailing challenger David Porter by 21 percent with nearly 80 percent of precincts counted. Full Story