People sometimes become angry without me knowing why. Yesterday there were three people in Austin angry at me BUT I KNOW WHY! Yesterday Mayor Glen Robertson and I testified before the Railroad Commission of Texas. They were proposing rule changes that, in their explanation, would reduce the expenses of contested natural gas rate cases. THE TRUTH IS they were working to reduce the ability of cities to contest natural gas rate increases. One huge energy company in Houston (Centerpoint) has been pushing for this change for several years, always to the objections of cities. In case youre not familiar with the Railroad Commission (RRC) and how they operate, you would think they watch out for the interests of the average Texas resident. You would be WRONG! They are a rubber stamp group for the utilities of Texas. A huge percentage of their campaign contributions come from the very people they regulate. This is a major CONFLICT OF INTEREST. Everyone knows it but no one seems to have the ability to make changes. Yesterday I reminded them of some hard truths they didnt want to hear. Commissioner Smitherman was so angry with me his face glowed like Rudolphs nose. He asked me questions that were so slanted they defied logic, but he is/was a commissioner (yesterday was his last day in office and yes, I did my happy dance last night) and could spin his questions. I answered with more facts FROM THE RRCS OWN RULINGS, and for some reason that did nothing to calm him. In the end they passed the rule changes BUT with the condition they would not be implemented until Septerber 1, 2015. This was a great tactical and political move on the part of the RRC, appeasing the Darth Vader of Utilities, Centerpoint, and handing an olive branch to the legislature. (Several legislators had told them they were over extending their authority and doing what the legislature should be doing.) Now the legislature has the burden of overriding these rule changes. Now we must take the fight to the Texas Legislature, asking them to do what the RRC SHOULD HAVE DONE YESTERDAY--VOTE DOWN THESE UNREASONABLE RULES. Ill keep you updated on how you can help hold down your natural gas rates. Ill also post my comments from yesterday on a seperate post as this one is already way too long. Oh, stay tuned to see where Barry Smitherman works next. The scuttlebut in Austin yesterday was he would work as a lobbyist for.............Centerpoint.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Dec 2014 18:05:00 +0000
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