A bipartisan pair of lawmakers sent letters on Thursday to 18 federal agencies requesting information about their compliance with the Hatch Act, a law designed to create a firewall between political activities and official duties for members of the administration.
The letters came just days after a complaint against Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro was made public. That complaint, investigated by the Office of Special Counsel, discovered Castro had violated the Hatch Act by commenting on the presidential race during an interview dedicated to promoting HUD policies.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and Rep. Elijah Cummings, the panel’s ranking Democrat, asked 18 Cabinet secretaries how they direct their agencies to comply with the Hatch Act.
Provisions of the law prohibit administration officials from using taxpayer funds to pay for political activities.
But compliance with the Hatch Act has been complicated recently by Hillary Clinton’s flirtation with selecting three current cabinet secretaries as her running mate. Castro, Labor Secretary Tom Perez and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack are reportedly on Clinton’s short list of vice presidential contenders.
To avoid mixing political and official activities, President Obama has banned current secretaries from speaking at the Democratic National Convention.
