This story is part of a partnership between KERA and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.
Newly elected Railroad Commissioner Jon Rosenthal laid out his priorities ahead of transition meetings in Austin planned for next week.
At a press conference in Midland, Rosenthal said his top priority is doubling the budget for the agency.
“Voters have delivered a mandate for a change,” said Rosenthal. “My goal is to help this commission be more effective and transparent.”
The Texas Railroad Commission oversees the state’s oil and gas industry. In 2025, state lawmakers appropriated $593 million for the agency for the next two fiscal years.
Rosenthal worked in this industry for over 25 years as a mechanical engineer; he also served four terms in the Texas House representing a district that overlaps with parts of west Houston. He describes himself as a “drill baby drill” Democrat.
“(That’s) because I want to promote American energy independence,” said Rosenthal. “And when we talk about American energy independence, Texas is where it’s at.”
In 2024, Texas accounted for almost half of the country’s crude oil production.
Rosenthal wants to increase the agency’s budget to streamline processes for responsible operators and offer competitive wages for staff.
“I think your workforce is your most valuable resource,” said Rosenthal. “If you want to have good folks, you’ve got to treat them good, or they’ll go somewhere else. That’s all there is to it.”
He also wants to “turbocharge” the plugging of orphaned and zombie wells.
Orphaned wells are wells that have been inactive for at least 12 months, while zombie wells are wells that are becoming unplugged. Thousands of these wells are leaking methane, which contributes to climate change, and contaminating water supplies with toxic chemicals.
The Railroad Commission plugged over 2,000 wells during the last fiscal year – a record number – but still ended up with more of them at the end of the year then they started off with. That’s because a large number of low producing and inactive wells become orphaned.
“(We must) dramatically ramp up our efforts to plug those wells, and you need the resources to be able to address,” said Rosenthal. “If we don’t go after… the root cause of it, we’re going to be chasing our tail forever. I hope the other commissioners will join me in taking steps to act boldly on this.”
He joins two sitting Republican commissioners, Wayne Christian and Christi Craddick. He said thanks to his experience in the Texas House, he’s “always had to work across the aisle to get anything done.”
“When Democrats and Republicans work together on the areas where we find common ground, I feel that’s where we’re doing the best work for the people of our state,” said Rosenthal.
Celeste Guajardo is the Climate, Energy and Environment reporter for KERA and Grist. Got a tip? Email her at cguajardo@kera.org.
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