House committee chairs direct White House, federal agencies to preserve documents amid Biden transition

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House Committee chairs on Tuesday directed the White House and the Trump administration to comply with federal record-keeping laws and preserve any information that would be responsive to congressional subpoenas and investigations during the transition period to a Biden administration.

“As the Trump administration prepares for the transition of power to the new Biden administration, we write to remind you that all Executive Office of the President employees and officials must comply with record preservation obligations set forth in federal law and preserve information to relevant congressional oversight,” Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., Oversight Chair Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., along with nearly two dozen other chairs, wrote to White House counsel Pat Cipollone.

Fox News has requested comment from the White House.

The chairs also sent letters to the more than 50 federal agencies under the Trump administration. The directive covers documents and electronic messages and metadata involving official business that were sent using both official and personal accounts or devices, including communications through text messaging, phone-based message applications or encryption software, according to the chairs.

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“Over the last four years, the administration obstructed numerous congressional investigations by refusing to provide responsive information,” the chairs wrote in letters to agencies.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, joined at left by Rep. Carolyn Maloney, acting chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, meets with reporters at the Capitol in Washington on Oct. 31, 2019.
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, FIle)

“You are obligated to ensure that any information previously requested by Congress — and any other information that is required by law to be preserved — is saved and appropriately archived in a manner that is easily retrievable,” they added.

The letters come as President-elect Joe Biden and his transition team begin to navigate and move forward with a transfer of power.

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The General Services Administration (GSA), though, has not yet made an ascertainment decision on Biden, withholding the green light to begin his transition. The delay is costing the Biden team access to more than $6 million in federal funding, security clearances, and the ability to meet with other officials at intelligence agencies.