Railroad Commission Chairman Smitherman Working to Provide Concealed Handgun License Courses for Railroad Commission Employees

AUSTIN –– Railroad Commission Chairman Barry Smitherman today announced that he is working to make available concealed handgun license courses for all interested Railroad Commission employees. In 2011, Smitherman led an effort to change Railroad Commission policy to allow Commission employees to legally carry a concealed handgun on Commission property. That policy follows the guidelines of Sen. Glenn Hegar’s Senate Bill 321.

“Today’s actions will allow Commission employees, who desire to do so, to receive the proper training to be licensed to carry a concealed handgun under the laws of Texas,” Smitherman said. Chairman Smitherman said he is working with the National Rifle Association to implement courses that would be made available to Railroad Commission employees.

“Employees have expressed an interest in this training, and I want to make sure our employees have access to this type of training which is allowed under the law,” Smitherman said. “We hope other state agencies also will use this course as a model for their employees.

“Also, in light of recent shooting tragedies around the country, I want to ensure that our employees have an opportunity to learn how to protect themselves if faced with similar situations,” Smitherman said.

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Chairman Barry Smitherman was appointed to the Railroad Commission of Texas in July 2011, and was elected Chairman in February 2012. In November 2012, Chairman Smitherman won a statewide election to the Commission with 74 percent of the vote, receiving more than 4.5 million votes. Chairman Smitherman currently serves as Texas’ representative on both the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission and the Southern States Energy Board, and as Chair of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ Gas Committee. He is on the Visiting Committee of the Bureau of Economic Geology with the Jackson School of Geosciences at The University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas School of Law Center for Global Energy, International Arbitration, and Environmental Law, and the Eanes Education Foundation Advisory Board.