EPA chief recuses himself from lawsuits he was involved in as Oklahoma’s attorney general.
(WASHINGTON) — EPA chief Scott Pruitt has recused himself from lawsuits against the Environmental Protection Agency that he was involved in as Oklahoma’s attorney general.
He also will not take part in any cases in which the state of Oklahoma is a party.
“I am taking this action to avoid even the appearance of any impropriety,” Pruitt said in the statement.
In his previous role as Oklahoma attorney general, Pruitt participated in more than a dozen lawsuits against the EPA, including challenges to the Obama-era’s Clean Power Plan and a rule related to the Clean Water Act.
Pruitt said in his statement Thursday that his recusal “addresses all of my ethics obligations.” During Pruitt’s confirmation hearing, Democrats pressed him on his stances on rules intended to protect against climate change and air and water pollution and urged him to recuse himself from the 14 cases in which he had participated in lawsuits against the agency he was named to lead.
“What the American people are expecting here is that the EPA doesn’t turn into every polluters’ ally,” Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.)
said to Pruitt during his hearing, urging him to recuse himself “from every case you brought.” Pruitt at the hearing discussed his view that the bulk of environmental regulations should be in the hands of the states.
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