It rejected Pruitt’s argument that the approval was only necessary if the costs were related to aesthetic improvements. Investigators said such spending clearly falls in the category of needing congressional approval if it exceeds $5,000. The $43,000 phone booth was only one of several controversial spending decisions by Pruitt, who spent more than $100,000 on first-class travel, rented a bedroom at a rate far below market value from the wife of an energy lobbyist, and gave big raises to two aides that the White House refused to approve. But the GAO’s finding magnifies the political problems Pruitt is creating for an administration which vows zero tolerance for corruption and self-dealing. President Trump, who continues to back Pruitt as spending scandals swirl around him, has given little sign he is looking to discipline his environmental chief. “Because EPA used its appropriations in a manner specifically prohibited by law, EPA violated the Antideficiency Act,” said the GAO report, which was released Monday. The violation subjects Pruitt to a range of punishments that could include suspension or even dismissal.
The Government Accountability Office concluded that Scott Pruitt violated the Antideficiency Act by not informing Congress before he authorized the construction of the booth, which Pruitt said was needed to deter eavesdroppers.
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The embattled chief of the Environmental Protection Agency broke federal law when he spent more than $43,000 of agency funds to install a soundproof telephone booth in his office, federal investigators have found.
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