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Committee questions fiscal note as bill would expand Railroad Commission role inspecting electric lines at well sites
Summary
During testimony on House Bill 143, senators pressed the Railroad Commission, the Public Utility Commission and the LBB about a new provision that would require the Railroad Commission to inspect certain electric utility infrastructure at oil and gas sites; a revised fiscal note prompted follow‑up.
House Bill 143, sponsored in committee by Senator Kelly Hancock on behalf of Representative Ken King, would codify a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Railroad Commission of Texas and the Public Utility Commission that allows the agencies to work together to address electrical hazards at oil and gas well sites, including notifying electric utilities to shut off power when safety hazards exist.
Senators pressed agency witnesses about a significant change in the Legislative Budget Board’s fiscal note after the committee substitute was filed. Senator Hancock noted that the substitute added a reference to PUC regulations; Natalie Dubiel, attorney for the Railroad Commission, and Travis Baer, deputy assistant director of field operations for the Railroad Commission, both said the added language expanding inspections to include whether an operator is an electric utility and to inspect to PUC standards is the primary driver of the fiscal note.
“...as filed version of this bill did not include subsection A2, which references the PUC regulations and neither did the MOU,” Dubiel testified. Travis Baer said the change would expand inspections to include power poles and overhead lines to the point of the service point where the utility connects to the customer.
Mark Wildson, manager of the Legislative Budget Board natural resources team, told the committee staff notified the LBB late that the Railroad Commission had requested an updated cost estimate; the LBB said it had not received an opportunity to revise the fiscal note when the substitute was released and that the late call had “caught us a little bit by surprise.”
Public testimony included Adrian Shelley of Public Citizen and Dale Smith of the Texas Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, both supporting the bill as a way to close an oversight gap. The committee closed public testimony and left the bill pending while members asked staff to investigate the fiscal‑note process, coordinate with the LBB and the affected agencies, and return with clarifying information.
