Railroad commission race

Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Michael Williams says he'll know what to do whatever happens with the volatile price of oil.

"I became a commissioner 10 years ago when the price of crude was below $20 a barrel," said Williams, a Midland native.

Although Williams doesn't expect a sharp downturn in the price of oil, he said the state is better prepared to deal with such a situation because of programs that handle abandoned wells.

Incentives for the construction of clean coal power plants, such as one being considered for Penwell, are among Williams' goals if elected for his second full term.

"It's going to play a significant role," Williams said of clean coal. "The efforts Odessans made in terms of FutureGen will not be wasted."

FutureGen was a later-cancelled near-zero emissions plant the Penwell site lost out on in 2007.

Williams would also like to see more research on wind energy, particularly on how to store power during hours when the wind isn't blowing.

"If we crack that nut, we can move wind a little bit forward," he said.

He also looks to expand the use of solar and nuclear power, possibly having Texas A&M University researchers look into ways to reuse nuclear waste.

Mark Thompson, Williams' Democratic opponent, said that while he supports alternative energy, he wants the public to have a say in its use.

"I don't want to switch from a bunch of oil billionaires to some wind billionaires," he said.

Thompson, a disability rights advocate from the Dallas suburb of Garland, said he got into the race because of his concerns over the way the Railroad Commission reacted to the deaths of several people due to faulty pipeline couplings. Uncapped wells are another of his concerns.

Another issue Thompson hopes to address is the backlog of permits, which is causing delays in drilling jobs.

"A lot of Republicans tell me they're going to go ahead and vote for me because it can't get any worse," Thompson said.

But Williams said the Railroad Commission has been hampered by geologists and others being able to find higher pay with private companies due to the oil boom. In order to help eliminate the backup, he plans to seek state money to hire more than 40 employees.

"Not only are we not fully staffed, a lot of the staff that we have is younger and less experienced than the people they are replacing," he said.

Though he looks to improve safety, Thompson said he isn't out to shut down drilling.

"I'm not out to strangle the industry or put people out of a job," he said. "I want to see everyone treated equally and fairly."

Libertarian David Floyd also is on the ballot in the Railroad Commissioner race.