US Watchdog Sues Trump Environmental Agency Head Nominee for 'Polluter Emails'

PORTLAND (Sputnik) — The lawsuit alleges Pruitt failed to provide public access to official emails and other documents for more than two years when he was Attorney General in the US state of Oklahoma, according to the CMD.

"Scott Pruitt has withheld access to thousands of emails with businesses or organizations whose activities adversely affect the environment and other records of vital public interest for the past two years," CMD’s lawyer Robert Nelon said on Tuesday. "His inaction denies the public ‘prompt and reasonable’ access to public documents and violates Oklahoma’s Open Records Act."

The lawsuit also requests an injunction to prevent the Oklahoma Attorney General from destroying any documents relevant to the group's open records requests.

CMD said it has filed seven records requests with Pruitt’s office in 2015 and 2016, and another two requests last month. The requests sought communications with Koch Industries and other coal, oil and gas corporations, as well as with the corporate-funded Republican Attorney General’s Association.

"Pruitt has yet to turn over a single document, despite acknowledging in August 2016 that his office has 3,000 emails and other documents relevant to CMD’s first request in January 2015," the release added.

Moreover, CMD is also requesting an emergency hearing because of the impending vote in eth US Senate on Pruitt's nomination to head the EPA.