{"id":24884,"date":"2013-03-05T05:30:02","date_gmt":"2013-03-05T11:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/?p=24884"},"modified":"2013-03-08T10:19:45","modified_gmt":"2013-03-08T16:19:45","slug":"fracking-goes-to-the-texas-legislature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/2013\/03\/05\/fracking-goes-to-the-texas-legislature\/","title":{"rendered":"Fracking Goes to the Texas Legislature"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo by Mose Buchele<\/p>

Texas is not known for robust state regulation of industry, but some lawmakers are filing bills to address the current oil and gas boom.<\/p><\/div>\n

Update\/Correction: 03\/08\/13<\/em><\/p>\n

The original version of this story reported that Rep. Van Taylor’s HB 100<\/a> would reduce methane flaring by encouraging the capture of more methane gas. In a subsequent interview, Rep. Taylor clarified, saying it reduce Co2 emissions by making carbon gasses more valuable to drillers looking to extract more oil and gas from unitized fields.<\/em> It would not reduce flaring. <\/em><\/p>\n

In some northeastern states like New York and New Jersey, elected officials debate whether to ban <\/a>the type of drilling called hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.” You\u2019d be hard pressed to find talk like that from Texas lawmakers.<\/p>\n

At a recent panel discussion hosted by StateImpact Texas, four Texas legislators from diverse political and geographic backgrounds all sang the praises of the fracking boom.<\/p>\n

“As I tour my district, and I drive through what were once small towns and counties, what I hear is, it\u2019s exciting, there are a lot of opportunities,” said Carlos Uresti<\/a>, a Democratic State Senator from San Antonio, in a typical nod to the economic promise of the oil and gas boom.
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But just below the surface, as you drill down into the issues, there is a debate forming over the role Texas elected officials will play in regulating the impacts of drilling.<\/p>\n

Uresti, for example, wants to take oil and gas tax revenue to fix roads damaged by drilling trucks<\/a>.\u00a0 That got a lukewarm response from some other panelists. Senator Rodney Ellis, a Democrat from Houston, wondered if industry shouldn\u2019t pay for the damage itself.<\/p>\n

Ellis has proposed some bills of his own, including one that would review and possibly reduce tax exemptions the state gives to drilling companies<\/a>. He’s framing his proposal as a kind of “sunset legislation” for all tax loopholes, not just drilling.<\/p>\n

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Photo by Jeany Choi<\/p>

Four lawmakers sat down to talk drilling, legislation and the oil and gas boom with StateImpact Texas Mose Buchele.<\/p><\/div>\n

“I think we should take every tax break we give in Texas though the sunset review process. And if it was a good idea when it’s passed, it will be a good idea again,” Sen. Ellis said. “But we ought to take the fiscal cliff argument. Let it die!”
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Republican Representative Phil King from Weatherford, who sits on the House Committee on Energy Resources, was skeptical about that proposal, worrying it could hurt industry in his district.<\/p>\n

King comes from the North Texas Barnett Shale region. There\u2019s a lot of natural gas there, but its value has dropped because it\u2019s so abundant. That\u2019s lead to a decrease in drilling that King wants to reverse.<\/p>\n

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Some Other Bills Relating to Oil and Gas in Texas<\/h4>\n