Former EPA aide details lavish spending by Pruitt

WASHINGTON — Scott Pruitt, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, insisted on staying in luxury hotels that were costlier than allowed by government standards, while also pushing to fly on an airline not on the government’s approved list so he could accrue more frequent flyer miles, one of his top former deputies at the agency has told congressional investigators.

The new allegations are detailed in a scathing sixpage letter signed by two senators and three House lawmakers — all Democrats — whose staff members met this week with Kevin Chmielewski, who served as the EPA’s deputy chief of staff until he was removed from his post after raising objections to this and other spending.

The letter was signed by Sens. Thomas R. Carper of Delaware and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, as well as Reps. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, Gerald E. Connolly of Virginia and Donald S. Beyer Jr. of Virginia.

Jahan Wilcox, a spokesman for the EPA, said, “We will respond to members of Congress through the proper channel.”

Chmielewski told congressional staff members during a meeting this week that Pruitt often would seek to schedule trips back to Oklahoma, Pruitt where he still owns a home, so he could stay there for weekends. “Find me something to do,” were the instructions Pruitt gave his staff after telling them he wanted to travel to particular destinations, the letter says, quoting Chmielewski, who was expected to sign off on the trips.

When planning a trip to Italy, Pruitt “refused to stay at hotels recommended by the U.S. Embassy, although the recommended hotel had law enforcement and other U.S. resources on site,” according to the letter, which was written and sent to Pruitt, asking him to turn over documents related to the letter’s claims. Instead, Pruitt chose to stay “at more expensive hotels with fewer standard security resources,” while bringing along his own security team “at taxpayer expense.”

For other trips, Pruitt pushed the agency to book him on Delta, even though it is not the federal government’s contract carrier, “because you want to accrue more frequent flyer miles,” the letter says.

The letter also said that Pruitt and others at the agency retaliated against staff members, including Chmielewski, when they objected to spending requests.

Chmielewski, for example, refused to approve first-class travel for one of Pruitt’s aides for a trip Pruitt took to Morocco last year, saying the cost violated federal rules. After that, he was told by Pruitt’s chief of staff, Ryan Jackson, that he would be fired or reassigned.