Jeremy Mazar: Fantastic. Good morning, everyone. Happy New Year.
And welcome to the Railroad Commission of Texas. My
name's Jeremy Mazar. I'm the Director of Government
Relations for the Railroad Commission. And I'm excited
and honored to be here today for the swearing in of
our 51st Commissioner. Commissioner Jim Wright. Before
we begin, I'd like to introduce Mr Luke Wright, Jim
and Sherry Wright's son, to start our meeting with a
prayer. Luke is the pastor and speaker with Texas Cowboys
Churches, and we're honored to have him here today.
So please stand. And Luke, please come come up and lead us in prayer.
Luke Wright: Father God, as a state united, we come humbly in prayer.
First we give thanks, Almighty Father, to the great
state in which we all live, knowing that you
carved out a state as a representation of what a
little piece of Heaven is like. Father God, you told
Joshua that this is my command: to be strong and courageous,
do not be afraid or discouraged for the Lord, your God,
is with you wherever you go. So blessed is he who comes
in the name of the Lord today. And Father, we pray
that you bless my dad and this Commission that they may
do the work as you would do. And may the Holy Spirit
fill their hearts and direct their decisions.
It is in your name, Father God, we give praise and thanks.
Amen.
Jeremy Mazar: Thank you very much. Please remain standing. Sorry.
We'll now have Chairman Christi Craddick lead
us in the Pledge of the United States of America.
Chair Craddick: Thank you, Jeremy And it's an honor to be here today,
and with Jim and his family. And we look forward to
working with you. So let's say the Pledge. I pledge
allegiance to the flag of the United States of America,
and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation,
under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for
all. Everybody stay standing.
Jeremy Mazar: Next, to lead us in the
pledge to the Texas flag, is Commissioner
Wayne Christian.
Commissioner Christian: And again, I join Chairman Craddick
in welcoming Jim and saying how honored we are to have
a good man. And he even is good enough, he and, it
must be from his wife, that he has a pastor as a
son. I mean, that's... Join me in the pledge of the
Texas flag. Honor the Texas flag. I pledge allegiance
to thee, Texas, one state, under God, one and indivisible.
Jeremy Mazar: Now you can be seated.
Since its establishment in 1891, 50 individuals have
served as a Commissioner on the Railroad Commission
of Texas. Mr Wright has the distinction of being our
51st Railroad Commissioner. Before we officially swear
him into office this morning, I'd like to share a little
bit of background about Mr Wright. He's born
and raised in South Texas, and he's a fifth generation
family rancher in the South Texas area. He began his work
in the Texas energy industry at the age of 19 and has
used his hand on experience to create a group of environmental
service companies that currently serve Texas energy
sector. He has a strong record of community service
and involvement. Towards that end, he served as a Board
member for the Costova Coastal Bend and on the Board
of the Robstown Area Development
Commission. I'm also proud to say that the Railroad
Commission is not his first rodeo. He has rode bulls
competitively for more than 20 years and was a member
of the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association. Swearing
in Commissioner Wright today will be Texas Supreme Court
Justice Eva Guzman. Justice Guzman was appointed to
the Supreme Court in 2009 by Governor Rick Perry, and
she was elected to a full term in 2010. And then she
was subsequently re-elected to the Supreme Court in
2016. She has a distinguished record of legal and public
service, and we're honored to have her here today.
Justice Guzman, please lead us in the swear in of Commissioner
Wright.
Justice Guzman: Good morning. I'm so honored and privileged to join
Commissioner Wright and Sherry and his family.
I am a longtime advocate of children in the child welfare
system. And when I read that you have been on the CASA
Board, that just speaks volumes about your commitment
to family and to our most vulnerable. So thank you
so much. Commissioner Christian it's great to be here.
And are you ready?
If you'll raise your right hand.
I, state your name. I, state your name.
Commissioner Wright: I, Jim Wright.
Justice Guzman: Do solemnly swear
Commissioner Wright: Do solemnly swear
Justice Guzman: that I will faithfully execute
Commissioner Wright: that I will faithfully
execute Justice Guzman: the duties of the office
Commissioner Wright: The duties of the office
Justice Guzman: of the 51st Railroad Commissioner of the state
of Texas
Commissioner Wright: the 51st Railroad Commissioner of the State
of Texas
Justice Guzman: and will to the best of my ability
Commissioner Wright: and will
to the best my ability
Justice Guzman: preserve, protect and defend
Commissioner Wright: preserve protect and defend
Justice Guzman: the Constitution and laws
Commissioner Wright: the Constitution and laws
Justice Guzman: of the United States
Commissioner Wright: of the United States
Justice Guzman: and of this state
Commissioner Wright: and of this state.
Justice Guzman: So help me God
Commissioner Wright: so help me God
Justice Guzman: Congratulations.
Commissioner Wright: Thank you.
Jeremy Mazar: Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming Commissioner
Jim Wright to the Railroad Commission.
Commissioner, on behalf of the 848 employees of the
Railroad Commission, we're honored to have you here.
Welcome to the team. Welcome to the family. We look
forward to working with you and and for you in service
all Texans.
Commissioner Wright: Thank you so
much, Jeremy. I appreciate that. I'd like
to say, because Luke looked at me with a with a kind
of a strange face when he was announced as a pastor.
Lukes is not a pastor. Luke fills in at Rodeo Cowboy
Churches for other pastors whenever they need a vacation
or they're sick. So I just wanted to clarify that first.
So now you don't have to frown at me. You know, I would
like to start by saying thank you to my wife and family.
Those that worked diligently to assist in making my
campaign successful and to all of you who not only
supported my bid but who turned out at the polls and
cast their ballot for my success.
I would also like to thank the honorable Justice Eva
Guzman for making the time today of swearing me in.
Thank you so much. I would like to ask my family that
are here today either stand or wave to be recognized.
So please stand.
Okay.
Thank you. Thank you. All I want to say, with all my
being allows, for the sacrifices made in getting me
here and for those to come as I strive to do my
part here on the Commission to ensure our state's natural
resources continue to provide an immense economic
benefit for Texans. This transition into my role as
one of the three standing Commissioners has been such
a delight as all of the folks here working at the Railroad
Commission have been very helpful in making a really
smooth transition. Since since the election, you
guys have done a wonderful job. Thank you all so much.
Appreciate that. I'd like to also recognize the persons
that that are coming in to assist me in my role as
a Railroad Commissioner, and I'd like to recognize
them. Providing public relations is Miss Kate Szarkowski.
Kate, could you please stand and be recognized, wherever
she's at? It's an honor to have Kate joining
the Commission, in her part, to be a public relations
liasion between my office, the RRC staff and the general
public.
Kate has an immense amount of experience, having served
for folks not only in the political arena here in Texas
but also in Washington as well. Recently she served
as director of public affairs for Parsely Energy
in where she gained a vast knowledge of the energy
industry that we here at the Commission regulate.
Thank you, Kate, for being here. Thank you for joining
my team. Next, I want to recognize Mr Christopher
Hodgkins who will be guiding me through all the
legal aspects related to items addressed before the Commission.
Mr. Hoskins graduated from st. Mary School of Law and
has been practicing law within the energy sector for
15 years. Additionally, Mr Hodgkins formally served
the Commission as an administrative hearing examiner
and did so for nine years. His knowledge and experiences
will be a great attributes for the Commission and the
people of Texas. Christopher, will you please stand and be
recognized.
My third team member is Miss Meghan Moore. Miss Moore might have
the hardest job keeping all of us organized on on track.
Trust me, that is a hard one. She is eager to
take on the task as my executive assistant and looks
forward to working with all of us. Miss Moore, will
you please stand and be recognized?
And I'm really excited to have all of my colleagues
here today. I appreciate you all being here and thank
you all so very much. I know it's a tough time, and
I think every time we step out the door, it's a risk. Mr
Wayne Christian and Chairman Christi Craddick are the
real deal when it comes to regulating an industry that
has such a huge impact on all that reside in or work
here in Texas. Both have made such an impact on me as
I went through this process. As we move forward in
our roles as Commissioners, I know Texans and the rest
of the world will see that the three of us share the
sincere desire to continuously improve our state's
environment and economic stability. Texas is blessed
with vast natural resources that provide
safe, reliable and economic benefit for all who reside
within our state. We're not lead, we are not only
leading the nation and energy production, but among
the top energy powers when it comes to producing economically
and viable energy. Texas has a unique ability to provide
consumers, our state and the nation, with reliable energy
while decreasing our dependency on foreign sources.
It's no secret today that fossil fuels are
being blamed sometimes solely for global climate change.
These attacks on resources that keep our energy cost
reliable and our truthfully less environmentally impactful
than today's renewable sources at scale. This is a
major challenge for us to address in the coming future.
Our goal is to provide Texans with facts and not fictions.
Texas Energy Resources, including fossil fuels, will
continue to provide reliable energy and economic prosperity
for generations to come. Our state's superiority in
multiple forms of energy equates directly to our
greatness and to the freedom to safely cultivate these
resources is not selfish, it is what makes Texas the
greatest state in the nation. Our state that has the
ability to compete globally. I look forward to designing
and implementing plans that include input from the
people of Texas, our landowners and the folks within
the energy industry, to improve our ability in cultivating
our natural resources my life has been rolling up
my sleeves and working hard, and it's all that I know.
I am ready and excited to be working for the people
of Texas. And that commitment to hard work and success
for all of us will continue, not only through my term
as one of the three Railroad Commissioners, but until
my dying breath. God bless you all. And thank you for
being here today. It's my honor to formally adjourn
this first public meeting of the Texas Railroad Commission
in 2021. Thank you all again.