Farmers, Ranchers Welcome Selection of Scott Pruitt to Lead EPA

Farmers, ranchers and many others cheered President-elect Donald Trump’s choice of Scott Pruitt to lead EPA. In his position as attorney general in Oklahoma, Pruitt has stood up for common-sense, effective regulation that protects the environment and the rights of the regulated community, according to American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall.

Trump’s selection of Pruitt “is welcome news to America’s farmers and ranchers—in fact, to all who are threatened by EPA’s regulatory overreach—and should help provide a new degree of fairness for U.S. agriculture,” Duvall said in a statement.

Noting farmers’ appreciation for Pruitt’s effective legal work in response to EPA’s overreaching Waters of the U.S. rule, Duvall said AFBF anticipates that as EPA administrator, Pruitt will pay attention to the concerns of farmers and ranchers and others who work with the nation’s natural resources on a daily basis.

Agriculture is a profession based on a solid ethic of conservation. It helps guide everything we do, and we expect that Pruitt will understand that in regulatory matters dealing with agriculture and the environment.

AFBF President Zippy Duvall

Pruitt led attorneys general from several states in filing one of a number of lawsuits challenging EPA’s WOTUS rule.

The EPA administrator must be confirmed by the Senate.