RAILROAD COMMISSION OF TEXAS
NEWS RELEASE - February 26, 2007

Commissioner Carrillo Elected Chair of OCS Policy Committee

AUSTIN— Members of the Department of the Interior’s Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Policy Committee elected Commissioner Victor Carrillo of the Texas Railroad Commission to serve as OCS Policy Committee Chairman for a two-year period. The meeting and election took place in Annapolis, Maryland on Feb. 21-22. Commissioner Carrillo is Gov. Rick Perry’s official committee representative on behalf of the state of Texas.

The committee, chartered in 1975, provides advice to the Secretary of the Interior and the Minerals Management Service regarding all aspects of leasing, exploration, development and protection of resources in the federal waters offshore of the coastal states. The committee’s work includes recommendations on the 2007-12 OCS Oil & Gas Leasing Program as well as on new authority regarding alternative energy and alternative uses of the OCS. The nation’s current and projected energy needs will require continued leasing, exploration and development of OCS lands in an environmentally sound manner.

Commissioner Carrillo helps to lead the state agency that oversees the Texas energy sector -- the oil and gas, pipeline and surface mining industries. From September 2003 to September 2005, he served as Chairman of the Railroad Commission. Carrillo also served as Chairman of the Texas Energy Planning Council that created a Texas Energy Plan to help ensure that Texas remains the premier energy producing state in the nation. He currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Interstate Oil & Gas Compact Commission – a national organization representing the Governors of oil and gas producing states.

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www.rrc.state.tx.us/commissioners/carrillo/index.php

A native of Abilene, Texas, Victor Carrillo joined the Texas Railroad Commission in February 2003. In 2004, he won his first statewide election with almost four million votes and secured a six-year term of office through 2010. He has worked as a geologist, geophysicist, college professor, attorney and judge. He was previously elected to the Abilene City Council and as Taylor County Judge.