Railroad Commission Chairman Barry Smitherman Champions New Revolving Door Policy

AUSTIN, TX ––Texas Railroad Commissioner Barry Smitherman today proposed and passed a new Revolving Door Policy for the Texas Railroad Commission, which is the agency that regulates the Oil, Gas, Mining and Pipeline industries in Texas.

“This policy should leave no doubt among our staff, the industries we regulate, and the general public that the Railroad Commission is complying with both the letter and the spirit of the Texas Revolving Door Statute,” Smitherman said.  “Adopting this policy is an important step to maintaining the public trust,” Smitherman concluded.

Commissioner Buddy Garcia joined Chairman Smitherman voting for the Revolving Door Policy.

See a copy of the revolving door policy adopted today at the following link: Revolving_Door_Policy.pdf

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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.  Chairman Smitherman currently serves as Texas’ representative on both the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission and the Southern States Energy Board, and as Vice 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.