The macrocosmic reviews of the 2019 140-day session are replete with feel-good language: Cooperation Instead of Combativeness. An Aura of Kumbaya. Playing Nice. Mission Accomplished. The trio known as “the Big Three” vowed in the early going to address property taxes and school finance. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and Speaker of […]
Determining Legislative Fate
Industry Issues Spread Across Multiple Committees by Julie Anderson On the 45th day of the Regular Session of the Texas Legislature, the Legislative Reference Library published a set of statistics that paints a clear picture of the intrinsic value of legislative committees. As of Feb. 21, the Texas House of Representatives had filed 2,277 bills, […]
Summaries of Key Oil and Gas Legislation
Prepared for Permian Basin Petroleum Association By Benjamin W. Sebree The Sebree Law Firm PLLC May 29, 2017 SIGNIFICANT LEGISLATION OF THE SESSION I. RAILROAD COMMISSION OF TEXAS HB 1818 House Author: Gonzales, Larry Senate Sponsor: Taylor, Van Relating to the continuation and functions of the Railroad Commission of Texas. Railroad Commission of Texas Sunset […]
85th Texas Legislature: A Preview
by Julie Anderson The Texas Legislature meets in a regular session every two years, convening on the second Tuesday in January of every odd-numbered year. These biennial sessions are limited to 140 days. The governor can also call additional special sessions as necessary, which cannot exceed 30 days. The 85th Texas Legislature is […]
Charting the Course
Our rundown outlines the main bills that affect(ed) oil and gas in Texas and their status moving forward. Railroad Commission of Texas Sunset HB 1675 Bonnen, Dennis(R) Nichols, Robert(R) Relating to governmental entities subject to the sunset review process. Sunset Safety Net Bill. This is the so-called “Safety Net” bill that provides […]
The 83rd Legislature in Retrospect
Note: At the end of this article, there are Q&A’s with legislators about the legislative session. As the smoke clears on the recently concluded legislative session, Texas’ oil and gas interests can be relieved that nothing too damaging found passage. Still, questions remain and certain issues linger. If there are two things that West Texans […]
Legislative Sessions
With the start of a new year, elected officials in Texas and New Mexico can begin digging into legislative issues instead of election infighting. Unlike previous years when the energy industry came under fire in both states concerning regulations or the commission that regulates its activities, 2013 is a year when experts are predicting relatively […]