Texas' oil, gas regulator refuses to talk to media

http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/eagle-ford-energy/article/Texas-oil-gas-regulator-refuses-to-talk-to-media-5568387.php

Texas' oil, gas regulator refuses to talk to media
By Ramit Plushnick-Masti, Associated Press : June 21, 2014

HOUSTON — Texas' oil and gas regulator has instituted a blanket policy barring staff from doing media interviews, raising questions about transparency just as the state grapples with the intricacies of one of the largest energy booms in decades.

The three-member Texas Railroad Commission, which is one of the largest state agencies of its kind in the country, approved the policy in August 2012, shortly before Milton Rister took over as the commission's executive director. Since then, he has used his authority to funnel all media inquiries through a spokeswoman who responds via email and bars any direct access to staff.

The commission, which also regulates pipelines and mining, devotes much of its time to permitting oil and gas drilling and production, ensuring wells are safe and investigating complaints or problems at those sites.

For a Texas agency to ban all media interviews is unusual. Typically, the media relations department is not the source of information, but rather acts as a liaison to connect journalists with the staff they need to speak with for a particular story.