[Episode #206] – Regulatory Capture in Texas

As we have discussed in previous episodes of the show (like Episodes #73, #177, and #198), state regulators and legislators can be ‘captured’ by the industries they are supposed to regulate and wind up serving those industries instead of the public interest.

Usually, regulatory capture is a form of corruption: The system isn’t supposed to work that way, but certain interests can manage to corrupt it. In Texas, however, that kind of capture isn’t a bug—it’s a feature.

In this episode, investigative journalist Russell Gold of Texas Monthly shares what he found after tracking down hundreds of documents scattered across dozens of offices around the state. Not only does the chair of the Texas commission that regulates the oil and gas business personally earn royalties from some of the very oil and gas leases she regulates, so does her family.

We also check in on the progress that Texas is making—and not making—to prevent the kind of grid blackout that happened during the February 2021 big freeze. And we ask where the limits to corruption in Texas actually are, and how rank and file voters in the state feel about it. It’s a sordid story, but an important one to understand, because it reveals a lot about the power of the oil and gas industry in the US.

Guest:

Russell Gold is an award-winning investigative reporter and author. He has reported on energy at the Wall Street Journal since 2000, covering many of the major stories of the period including the rise of fracking, the Deepwater Horizon and the energy transition. His 2014 book, The Boom, was longlisted for the FT Goldman Sachs Business Book prize. Superpower was published in June 2019. He lives in Texas, with his wife and children.

On Twitter: @russellgold

On the Web:  www.russellgold.net

Recording date: July 5, 2023

Air date: September 6, 2023

Geek rating: 2