The name of the Texas oil and gas regulatory agency — unlike its peers in other states — has nothing to do with fossil fuels or natural resources. The Railroad Commission of Texas hasn’t had anything to do with railroads for almost two decades and, for advocates of government transparency, the agency’s name is not just a harmless misnomer — it’s a smoke screen that helps shield the Railroad Commission from public scrutiny and prevents voters from understanding the nature and extent of the elected commissioners’ power.
“It seems obvious a name should reflect what the agency does,” said Adrian Shelley, Texas director of the nonprofit watchdog group Public Citizen. “The agency is actively trying to stay out of the public eye. I do not think it’s more complicated than that.”
