Rep. Bobby Scott has asked 10 Trump administration departments and agencies to confirm government records are preserved, as Democrats gain authority to investigate and subpoena officials.
Scott, the senior Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee and its expected next chair, asked agency leaders to provide written confirmation that records had been preserved, The Guardian reported Wednesday.
The letter cited preservation requirements under the Federal Records Act of 1950. The Guardian said the letter warned officials could face fines or up to three years in prison for willfully and unlawfully concealing, removing, mutilating, obliterating, falsifying or destroying records.
The Guardian said the recipients included the departments of Education, Agriculture and Labor; the Department of Health and Human Services; and the National Labor Relations Board. The request went to 10 departments and agencies in total.
Voters gave Democrats control of Congress, and their majorities will provide authority to investigate and subpoena administration officials, The Guardian reported. The report said Scott’s letter comes as Democrats move to use oversight powers outlined before the election.
Before the election, EconoTimes covered Democrats’ oversight plans. The White House told The Washington Post it was prepared to respond to congressional requests regardless of which party controlled Congress. Former officials and attorneys told the Post that executive privilege claims or court challenges could delay access to records and testimony. The Post also pointed to oversight disputes during Trump’s first term as a precedent.
Reuters reported before the election that White House officials had been reviewing executive options since April in case Democrats won control of Congress. EconoTimes’ earlier coverage also noted that the next Congress would set the rules for committee subpoenas.
The requested confirmations are due Nov. 18, The Guardian reported.
