Advocates to Railroad Commission: Listening to Texans Is Part of Your Job
Advocates gather at RRC hearing in response to change in public participation policy, abusive language in viral moment at last month’s hearing
AUSTIN, Texas – Today, a coalition of public health and environmental advocates, as well as community members, gathered at the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) hearing to stress the importance of listening to Texans, reminding officials that respectful public input is a key part of their duty and should not be dismissed as optional or a nuisance.
The comments follow a change in the commission’s public participation policy. In August, one of the three commissioners introduced a change to the public participation policy without prior notice. The other two commissioners seemed unaware of the proposal introduced at the hearing and reviewed it only briefly. Still, the change passed, eliminating the standing general public input opportunity from each meeting and leaving it to each commissioner’s discretion whether to include it. If no commissioner requests it, there will be no general public input opportunity at each meeting.
When an advocate criticized the change during the September meeting, one commissioner responded aggressively, interrupted her when she tried to answer his question, and used a sexist expletive. The chair then threatened to have security remove the advocate when she tried to respond to the commissioner’s question, which underscores concerns about respectful listening and fair treatment.
“People living with the impacts of oil and gas development across Texas have found the Railroad Commissioners to be inaccessible, whether at Open Meetings or through invitation to their communities. Good governance is shared governance. Elected officials cannot represent their constituents without hearing from them,” said Virginia Palacios, Executive Director of Commission Shift.
The advocates are asking the commission to guarantee public input on every open meeting agenda, allow remote public input, and take comment on agenda items while following the commission’s policy on decorum. Over 600 Texans have signed on to protect and expand public input at the RRC, in emails sent to the Texas House oversight committee.
“Commissioner Christian’s sexist and verbally abusive attack on a member of the public who had only delivered respectful comments is entirely unacceptable,” said Kaiba White with the Texas office of Public Citizen. “His tantrum was a clear violation of the Railroad Commission’s own decorum policy. Chair Craddick should have cut him off and admonished him instead of letting him finish, then saying she agreed with him. Constituent input should be welcomed, not discouraged with aggressive belittling.”
Though commissioners have defended the change by pointing to increased listening sessions hosted by agency staff, the standing general public input agenda item was the public’s only opportunity to speak to the three elected commissioners.
The abusive language used at the previous meeting violates the commissioners’ own decorum policy, which is read at the start of each hearing. The policy states: “Persons attending open meetings of the Commission, including those offering public comment, shall conduct themselves with dignity, courtesy, and respect toward the Commission, agency staff, and other persons in attendance in accordance with 16 TAC Sec. 1.5.”
Today, after White rebuked Christian and Craddick for their behavior, Craddick cut White’s speaking time short.
Additional comments from coalition members:
“Democracy — big D Democracy — wherein government is ‘Government of the people, by the people, and for the people’ is being chipped away at all around us these days,” noted Clean Water Action’s Texas director, Becky Smith. “When members of the public are courageous in coming forward with their needs and concerns about decisions that will affect their lives and those of their communities, they should be met with dignity, respect, and attention to the content of their comments.”
“The Railroad Commission’s decisions reach every corner of Texas, and all of its power comes from the people. Hearing from the public only makes the government better. But under this new policy, our right to an open forum exists at a commissioner’s mercy. A right that depends on discretion is not a right. It is permission, and we should never have to ask permission to speak to the officials we elect,” said Namrata Chhillar of Save Our Springs Alliance
Despite its name, the Railroad Commission does not regulate railroads. Instead, it is the powerful state agency that sets the rules for Texas’ oil and gas industry. Everyday Texans view the agency as too lenient on the industry’s air pollution, abandoning open wells, toxic wastewater injection, and more.