J Steven Hart to step down early as chairman of lobbying firm after intense scrutiny of unusual rental agreement with EPA chief

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The fossil-fuels lobbyist tied to a bargain-priced Capitol Hill condo that was leased by Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt is taking early retirement as a result of the scandal.

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Pruitt remains in his job, with the expressed backing of Donald Trump, despite a chorus of Democrats and a growing list of Republicans calling for Pruitt to be fired amid a string of ethics issues, including questions about his use of first class air travel and such pricey security precautions as a $43,000 anti-eavesdropping phone booth for his office.

The EPA inspector general announced earlier this week he will review spending by Pruitt’s full-time security detail, the latest in about a dozen ongoing investigations related to Pruitt by various government agencies.

The lobbyist, J Steven Hart, sent an email to friends and colleagues on Friday, announcing that he is leaving Williams and Jensen, the powerhouse Washington lobbying firm where he was chairman.



Hart, 64, said he had been planning to retire in November but intense scrutiny resulting from the unusual rental arrangement with Pruitt had led him to expedite his departure.

Media reports first disclosed last month that Pruitt paid just $50 a night for the condo to a corporation co-owned by Hart’s wife, who is also a lobbyist, triggering several ethics investigations.

In his email, Hart attempted to make light of the issue.

“I want to thank so many of you who have taken the time to send me and Vicki notes and flowers as we learned a new and personal meaning of ‘Fake News’ and ‘Real Friends’.” he wrote. “They say if you need a friend in Washington, get a dog. We now know that adage is not always accurate.”

Pruitt has described Hart as a friend and insisted that he paid a market rate for the condo. Comparable properties nearby are publicly listed at more than double what he paid.

Prior to being tapped by Trump to lead the EPA, Pruitt was attorney general of Oklahoma. Hart’s firm represents OGE Energy, one of the state’s electric utilities.



Campaign finance records show the lobbyist hosted a 2014 fundraiser for Pruitt’s state re-election effort where more than three dozen OGE executives cut checks, even though he was running without a Democratic opponent.

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Once Pruitt arrived at the EPA, copies of his daily calendar obtained by AP through a public records request show he meet with two top OGE executives and a registered lobbyist from Hart’s firm in March 2017, when he was living at the condo.

In October, the EPA announced it would rewrite the Clean Power Plan, an Obama-era regulation that sought to limit planet-warming carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants like those operated by OGE, which paid Hart’s firm $400,000 in lobbying fees last year.

The EPA press office did not respond to a request for comment.