Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Thursday blasted a questionnaire from the Trump transition team to the Energy Department that sought information on which employees worked on federal climate change programs, saying he’s not interested in singling out agency employees.

Appearing before a Senate panel Thursday, Mr. Perry — Mr. Trump’s nominee to head the Energy Department — said he had nothing to do with the questionnaire and does not approve of it.

“That questionnaire you referenced went out before I was ever selected as the nominee to sit before this committee,” he said. “I didn’t approve it. I don’t approve of it. I don’t need that information. I don’t want that information. That is not how I manage. I have a history of working with people to find answers to challenges that face us.”

The documents were sent out last month and were designed to identify Energy Department employees who worked on the Obama administration’s climate-change initiatives. The questionnaire led critics to claim the Trump transition team was conducting a witch hunt at the department.

Trump transition leaders later said the questionnaire should not have been sent, and that the official who sent the document had been disciplined.

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