Adviser to EPA chief cited for federal banking violations

Pruitt served as Oklahoma’s attorney general prior to his appointment by President Donald Trump. He has long known Kelly, whose bank provided $6.8 million financing when Pruitt and his business partners purchased Oklahoma City’s minor league baseball team in 2003, according to public records. Pruitt owned 25 per cent of the club before selling the franchise in 2010, another deal SpiritBank helped finance.

In a statement, Pruitt’s chief of staff, Ryan Jackson, said the EPA is fortunate to have Kelly on the staff. Pruitt has appointed Kelly to head his effort to restructure EPA’s Superfund program, which cleans up toxic waste sites.

“Kell has received full ethics and financial disclosure training as any EPA political appointee and senior official receives,” said Jackson, who added that he has known Kelly for many years. “He has already contributed immensely to the administrator’s agenda to speed up remediation timelines.”

An EPA official told The Associated Press that Kelly disclosed the FDIC probe before he was hired and that he will remain at EPA. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.

Kelly is paid an annual salary of $172,100, according to EPA records.

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Associated Press reporter Kelly Kissel in Little Rock, Arkansas, contributed.

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Follow AP environmental writer Michael Biesecker at www.Twitter.com/mbieseck

Michael Biesecker, The Associated Press

by Canadian Press

Adviser to EPA chief cited for federal banking violations

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