EPA Chief Scott Pruitt's aides and security agents spent $45,000 on trip to Australia

EPA Chief Scott Pruitt's aides and security agents spent $45,000 on trip to Australia

Pruitt's team spent about $45,000 to fly five people to Australia to prepare for a planned trip that was later canceled.
The EPA chief has been under fire from lawmakers for travel and security expenses.
The purchase of five business-class tickets costing $9,000 each was not a violation of U.S. government policy, which allows federal employees to travel business class on trips lasting 14 hours or more.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt, under fire from lawmakers for travel and security expenses, spent about $45,000 in government money to fly five people to Australia to prepare for a planned trip that was later canceled.

Two of his aides and three security agents flew to Australia last August on business-class tickets costing roughly $9,000 each to set up meetings for the EPA administrator.

The purchase of business-class tickets was not a violation of U.S. government policy, which allows federal employees to travel business class on trips lasting 14 hours or more.

But the spending on a five-person "advance" team for the Australia trip, revealed by U.S. officials who spoke to Reuters, comes as Pruitt faces scrutiny over his own frequent first-class travel and spending on such items as a 24-hour security detail.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/19/epa-chief-scott-pruitts-aides-and-security-agents-spent-45000-on-trip-to-australia.html