EPA air chief Joe Goffman angrily disputed an internal watchdog’s preliminary findings that he violated federal ethics rules, with his attorney at one point arguing that the results should not be made public, according to a lengthy written response obtained by POLITICO’s E&E News.
“Mr. Goffman’s career has been characterized by steadfast integrity,” Edward Kang of the firm Alston & Bird wrote in a July letter to EPA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG). In the letter, Kang sought extensive changes to a draft version of a report of the investigation into Goffman’s involvement in regulatory issues affecting businesses in which he had a financial stake.
“However, irrespective of the extent of the OIG’s revisions, we believe any publication of the existence or outcome of this report that is not statutorily required of the OIG would be completely improper,” Kang wrote, “and we request prior notification of any publication by the OIG of the existence or results of its investigation, with such notification to also include the content of such publication.”
That plea proved unavailing as Inspector General Sean O’Donnell’s office released the final version in August, albeit with some redactions. “After carefully considering Mr. Goffman’s response, we amended some sections of the report but did not alter our original conclusions,” the final report said.
