Most lobbyists balk at being characterized as special-interest whores but Hughey is comfortable in that role. Representing small natural gas producers, he attended a ’96 hearing on the state of Texas’ energy industry in drag. In case his intentions were unclear, he explained that he dressed as a “madam” to protest underregulated competition from intrastate gas pipeline companies. Changing clothes and roles, Hughey lobbied against state regulation in ’99 for Pioneer Concrete and North Texas Cement Co. Pioneer has 22 plants in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Residents of a Southlake subdivision sought a hearing from Bush’s Natural Resources Conservation Commission in ’99 to block the reopening of an adjacent Pioneer plant that was closed down for operating without a permit. The agency said it expected to deny the citizens a hearing on the grounds that the plant does not pose air-quality problems. This was news to neighbor Wanda Stowe, who said, “Pollution from this plant covers everything in our surrounding area with dust.” North Texas Cement ran into regulatory obstacles in the mid-‘90s that halted its burning of hazardous waste to fire its kilns. Instead, it proposed burning old tires as fuel. In addition to lobbying with the firm of Potter & Gunn, Hughey is an attorney at Hughey Oil.