Rep. Gerald E. Connolly (D-VA), Vice Ranking Member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), a senior member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, introduced the Ensuring Pruitt is Accountable (EPA) Act of 2018.
The legislation would ensure the Environmental Protection Agency’s Inspector General continues its investigations into former Administrator Scott Pruitt’s conduct and would suspend any proposed rulemaking signed by Pruitt until those investigations are completed and made public.
“Scott Pruitt may be gone but the stain of his venality still taints the Trump administration,” said Connolly. “The EPA Act will protect the integrity of the Inspector General investigations and give the American public a full account of Pruitt’s rampant abuses while in office.”
“Scott Pruitt brought unprecedented corruption and industry influence to the EPA,” said Merkley. “His actions cannot be allowed to stand unchallenged, and at the very least, these destructive moves must be put on hold until the numerous investigations into Pruitt’s activities have concluded. It’s time to restore an EPA that actually acts to protect our clean air and clean water rather than protecting the profits of powerful polluters.”
There are currently at least ten IG investigations into Pruitt, including his travel, use of taxpayer dollars to decorate his office, unprecedented security detail, and his use of multiple email accounts.
Text of the EPA Act is available here.
Connolly offered a similar amendment to H.R. 6147, the Department of Interior, Environment, and Related Appropriations Act of 2019.
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