As Dr. Ed Ireland pointed out in the DRC opinion column on May 14, fracking bans across the country are costing taxpayers. Cities and counties are hiring lawyers to defend the policies, which are being overturned left and right as illegal or even unconstitutional.

We Denton residents deserve to know how much it has cost us to defend our ban. With the addition of two new City Council members who want open and transparent government, I hope we find out.

Anita Burgess, our city attorney, told lawmakers in Austin that if we, the Denton taxpayers, had known the true cost of the ban, it would have had a “chilling effect” on the election. How does she know? What’s the cost that would have changed our minds?

The video of Ms. Burgess’s Austin discussion can be found on YouTube. Search “Anita Burgess.”

Denton clearly has that information. As taxpayers, we deserve to know.