Thursday’s hearing marked the end of the Legislature’s three-day marathon of public hearings.
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The hearings — meant to help understand how the Smokehouse Creek fire burned more than 1 million acres and became the largest in state history — put on display the distrust between Panhandle residents and state agencies and industry. In many cases, the residents of the Panhandle are closer to Denver, Albuquerque, and Oklahoma City than Austin.
The state’s forest service has concluded that a fallen decayed power line ignited the Smokehouse Creek fire. And Xcel Energy, a Minnesota-based company that provides electricity in the Panhandle,Mike Hoke, director of the Office of Public Engagement for the state’s Public Utilities Commission, said the agency doesn’t conduct inspections and relies on the utility companies to hire investigators, who then report to them.
“I bet if was licensed, they would be here today because if they didn’t, they might risk losing their license,” he told the Public Utilities Commission.
Texas Politics Texas Policy Texas Government Energy Environment Politics State Government Texas Legislature Pampa Panhandle Texas Panhandle Ken King Dustin Burrows
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