The Interior Department is defending itself against House Republican complaints about tardy responses to lawmakers’ post-hearing written queries.
In a letter signed Friday that became public Tuesday, Interior’s congressional liaison said the department has dutifully fielded the myriad “questions for the record” submitted by members of the House Natural Resources Committee.
“To ensure the department’s responses to the committee’s questions are accurate and consistent with administration policy and applicable law, this effort involves coordination among teams of dedicated public servants at the Department and across the federal government, often including subject matter experts at the regional and field levels,” wrote Andrew Wallace, director of Interior’s Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs.
Wallace added that these are the “same individuals who carry out the core functions and daily delivery of services to implement the critical mission of the department.”
