Texans tell environmental agency: Stop being reluctant to regulate industry

Dozens of Houston residents arrived at the Texas Capitol to testify during a Sunset Advisory Commission meeting about the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality on Wednesday. (Credit: Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune)

Texas lawmakers heard from dozens of Texans on Wednesday who pleaded with them to fix the state’s environmental agency, which they said is failing to reduce pollution in their neighborhoods.

At a hearing on a report evaluating the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s effectiveness, Texans as young as 9 and as old as 80 testified that the agency had not adequately responded to their environmental or health concerns.