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Pruitt Resigns Following More Than a Dozen Investigations
President Trump announced via
Twitter
last Thursday that Scott Pruitt had resigned while stating he did an "outstanding job" as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Various
news outlets
shortly thereafter posted the resignation letter, which made no mention of the ethical scandals that he faced. Instead, the former EPA Administrator explained that "the unrelenting attacks on me personally, my family, are unprecedented and have taken a sizable toll on all of us."
Pruitt's resignation came at a time when he was facing "more than a dozen federal and congressional investigations" including "outsized security spending, first-class flights, . . . routinely order[ing] his EPA staff to do personal chores for him . . .
[, and] leas[ing] a Capitol Hill condo last year for just $50 a night" from "the wife of a veteran fossil fuels lobbyist," according to
The Washington Post
. His resignation also came after he had undergone multiple Congressional hearings.
Pruitt served as Administrator of the EPA from February 17th, 2017 until July 6th, 2018, the
second shortest
tenure of anyone holding that position. During these 504 days, he built upon his "reputation as a dogged deregulator. . . [,] took steps to reverse more than a dozen major Obama-era regulations[,] and overhauled key elements of the agency's approach to scientific research,"
The Washington Post
reported.
The agency's deputy administrator, Andrew Wheeler, is
expected
to follow a
similar
deregulatory, pro-industry pattern as acting EPA Administrator. Prior to his current position at the EPA, he lobbied on behalf of energy, coal, and mining companies for more than ten years.
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Proposed Changes to the Endangered Species Act Would Expand States' Influence
Prior to leaving for their Independence Day Recess, Republican Senators had been working on an expansion of states' influence in the endangered species' recovery process,
The Hill
reported. "Draft legislation [is] due to be released Monday by [the] Environment and Public Works Committee
Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY)."
Republican Senators like Barrasso emphasize that, since its passage in 1973,
the Endangered Species Act has only helped less than fifty plants and animals come off of the list, out of more than fifteen hundred endangered species.
GOP members in the Senate also claim that they are "tak[ing] advantage of the experience of state regulators." This can be seen in their intention to allow states to conduct their own conservation efforts prior to officially declaring another species "endangered." On the other hand, people like Defenders of Wildlife's Senior Vice President of Conservation Bob Dreher disagree, believing
"[m]ost states . . . lack adequate authority to conserve endangered species."
Furthermore, while conservationists oppose the GOP's proposed change in favor of land owners' interests, both groups agree the act could be much more effective than it has been.
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This Week in Washington
As Senators and Representatives return from their Independence Day recess, a conference committee is expected to negotiate a compromise between the two versions of the Farm Bill this week. This committee will face "a number of difficult decisions" including work requirements for the Supplemental Assistance Program and changes to the conservation title, according to
Politico
.
The House's version of the Farm Bill would increase the Conservation Reserve Program's limit to 29 million acres, set the gross income cap to $900,000 for farmers in order to obtain subsidies, and require able-bodied individuals between the ages of 18 and 59 to work in order to receive SNAP benefits. None of these provisions are consistent with the Senate's bill that only increased the CRP's limit to 25 million acres, decreased the gross income cap to $700,000, and did not change SNAP's work requirements. The House version would also eliminate the Conservation Stewardship Program and fold it into the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, while the Senate version would keep both programs intact.
A number of Congressional committees will be meeting this week as well. The following are hearings of interest to the region.
Tuesday
Wednesday
The Senate Energy Subcommittee on National Parks will hold a legislative hearing where it will receive testimony on the
Restore Our Parks Act
at 3:00 pm in 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building.
Thursday
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NEMWI: Strengthening the Region that Sustains the Nation
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