EPA's Pruitt took flights costing taxpayers more than $58,000: Washington Post

[September 28, 2017]    (Reuters) - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) head Scott Pruitt is said to have taken at least four noncommercial and military flights since mid-February, costing taxpayers more than $58,000, the Washington Post reported.

Scott Pruitt, Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, answers a question during the Concordia Summit in Manhattan, New York, U.S., September 19, 2017. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

In June, Pruitt took the most expensive of the four trips when he traveled from Andrews Air Force Base to Cincinnati to join President Trump, the paper reported, citing records obtained from a congressional oversight committee. http://wapo.st/2fsAyBo

"When the administrator travels, he takes commercial flights," EPA spokeswoman Liz Bowman told Washington Post on Wednesday.

The administrator and the cabinet secretary are the face of the agency, and have an obligation to get out throughout the country, the paper quoted Bowman as saying.

Pruitt's frequent travels to Oklahoma are already being investigated by EPA's inspector general.

The EPA and Pruitt's office were not immediately available for comment outside regular business hours.

(Reporting by Shubham Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)

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