Regulation

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October 3, 2013

Railroad Commission Candidates Promise to Stick Around Awhile

From the Texas Tribune: At a meeting of the Conservative Political Action Conference last week in St. Louis, Charlie Kirk, executive director of the free-market group Turning Point USA, introduced state Rep. Stefani Carter as a leader who will one day prompt folks to muse, “Ah, I remember when I saw her.” For most public office-seekers, being […]

October 2, 2013

Smart Meters Coming to Far West Texas Find Mixed Reception

Millions of them have been installed in homes across Texas, but not everyone is happy about them. Smart meters, which allow allow utilities to respond to outages faster and help utilities and consumers monitor their energy use, have been deployed across much of the state at the urging of the state’s Public Utility Commission (PUC). […]

October 1, 2013

20 National Parks and Forests in Texas Closed During the Shutdown

Texas isn’t known for having a warm relationship with the federal government. A recent petition to the White House calling for Texas to secede garnered more than 100,000 signatures. The leading Republican candidate for Governor, state Attorney General Greg Abbott, has openly bragged about how much he loves suing the Obama administration. So Texans who disdain […]

September 30, 2013

Will Gravel Fix Broken Roads in the Eagle Ford Shale?

On a rare rainy day in DeWitt County, Texas, Curtis Afflerbach rumbles down a ragged strip of asphalt in his silver pickup. It’s hazy outside, but he can still make out the oil and gas wells on either side of him. Afflerbach counts them, reaching 12 as he drives the length of narrow road. Afflerbach […]

September 25, 2013

Crucial Permits Approved For Lake Ralph Hall in North Texas

From KERA News: State environmental commissioners have approved crucial permits for Lake Ralph Hall in Fannin County. The vote was historic, marking the first time since 1985 that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has approved the construction of a lake that would be a water supply. Commissioner Toby Baker said the step forward comes […]

September 24, 2013

No, You Can’t Keep a Pet Deer in Texas

And Other Observations from Game Warden Field Notes With each new edition of Game Warden Field Notes, a semi-regular release from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, we get a small peek into the day-to-day experience of Texas’ game wardens. Usually these include exactly what you might expect: hunters shooting game from their vehicles, anglers exceeding […]

September 23, 2013

3 Ways the Oil Boom Has Increased Hunger in Texas

The Permian Basin oil boom has brought jobs and wealth to West Texas, but it’s also brought something less expected: hunger. During a recent trip to Odessa, StateImpact Texas’s Mose Buchele sat down with Libby Campbell, director of the West Texas Food Bank, to learn how, as she puts it, “not all tides raise all […]

September 20, 2013

A Changing Market and Dim Future for Coal in Texas

Amid the continued decline in coal power in the state, Texas’ largest power generator is asking the state for permission to idle another of its coal power units this winter. And new federal regulations proposed today make it unlikely that many new coal power plants will be built in the foreseeable future. Luminant, a division of the […]

September 19, 2013

The Father of Environmental Justice Sees Danger in How Texas Regulates

Texas Land Commission Jerry Patterson told a political luncheon in Houston that “oppressive federal government regulation” was a big threat to the Texas energy economy. Especially pollution regulation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “And more specifically, (by) the U.S. Wildlife Service and their Endangered Species designations for critters that probably ought to die anyway,” […]

September 18, 2013

One Downside of Oil Drilling? Wasted Gas

As the fracking drilling boom continues in Texas and other states, a shift has taken place. While the beginning of the surge saw a rush for natural gas, in recent years the focus has moved to oil. And in the process, a lot of natural gas is being wasted. Billions of dollars worth, enough to […]

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