Scott Pruitt, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, traveled to his home state, Oklahoma, 10 times over three months this year, largely at taxpayer expense, according to a report released Monday. 
 
 The findings from the Environmental Integrity Project, a nonprofit group founded by former E.P.A. officials, are drawn from Mr. Pruitt’s calendar and the travel expenses he has submitted for reimbursement. Obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, the documents show Mr. Pruitt spent 43 out of 92 days from March through May in Oklahoma or traveling to or from the state. 
 
 The report does not assert that Mr. Pruitt’s estimated $12,000 in federally funded airfare, which includes travel to and from his home state, is improper. 
 
 Many in Oklahoma speculate that Mr. Pruitt, who was the state’s elected attorney general until assuming the E.P.A. job in February, plans to again seek statewide office. Mr. Pruitt lost a 2006 primary bid to become Oklahoma’s lieutenant governor. He was elected attorney general in 2010. 

 (Reuters) - The head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, was in his home state of Oklahoma on at least 43 of the 92 days of March, April and May, according to copies of his travel records obtained by the Environmental Integrity Project watchdog group and reviewed by Reuters. 
 
 FILE PHOTO: Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt speaks during an interview for Reuters at his office in Washington, U.S., July 10, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas 
 
 Pruitt’s frequent visits to Oklahoma have raised concerns among critics that he is cultivating political relationships in the state at taxpayer expense, instead of focusing on his job as head of the environmental regulator. EPA officials contend that Pruitt works hard and pays for his trips home to Tulsa to see his wife and children. 
 
 “Administrator Pruitt works long hours and is available around the clock,” said EPA spokeswoman Liz Bowman. “He is extremely focused and disciplined, which is evident by the fact that he spearheaded over two dozen significant regulatory actions since being sworn in.” 
 
 Pruitt has riled environmentalists by routinely raising doubts about the realities of climate change and by vowing to sweep away scores of Obama-era regulations rules to help business. Before becoming head of the EPA under Republican President Donald Trump, he was Oklahoma’s attorney general and repeatedly sued the agency he now runs to block federal environmental rules. 
 
 The travel records show Pruitt’s schedule this spring often took him to cities in the U.S. heartland where he held meetings – often with oil and gas industry representatives - made speeches and attended events, before flying to Tulsa for extended weekends. 
 
 The records showed Pruitt paid for some legs of the trips directly related to his visits home, although it was not clear he paid for all such legs. 
 
 The airfare for Pruitt’s travel to and from Oklahoma totaled more than $12,000, the Environmental Integrity Project said. That did not include travel and lodging expenses for his staff or his security detail, the records for which were not immediately available. 
 
 The practice of spending long weekends away from Washington was seen as unusual by former officials. 
 
 “The American people aren’t paying taxes for part-time Cabinet officials,” said Liz Purchia Gannon, who was spokeswoman for former EPA head Gina McCarthy, who served under former Democratic President Barack Obama during his second term. 
 
 McCarthy’s family lived in Boston while she was head of the EPA, and she “fit travel home into her personal time,” Purchia Gannon said. 
 
 A source who worked for former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, McCarthy’s predecessor, said Jackson’s family moved to Washington during her tenure, so she did not have to travel to see them. Jackson was not available for comment.
– A watchdog group suggests that EPA chief Scott Pruitt is spending an awful lot of time in his home state of Oklahoma. The Environmental Integrity Project, which was created by former EPA officials, took a look at Pruitt's travel records from March to May and discovered that he spent 43 out of 92 days either in Oklahoma or traveling there, reports the New York Times. Critics say it fits with a narrative that Pruitt plans another run for office, perhaps as governor or senator, and is cultivating political ties in his home state, reports Reuters. An EPA spokesperson disputes that, saying that "Administrator Pruitt works long hours and is available around the clock," she says. "He is extremely focused and disciplined, which is evident by the fact that he spearheaded over two dozen significant regulatory actions since being sworn in." The report shows that Pruitt traveled home 10 times over the three-month span, generally for long weekends. On some of those trips, he picked up a portion of the travel costs himself, though the Times frames the costs as being "largely at taxpayer expense." In all, his federal travel expenses totaled $12,000. The EIP says it sought the records after fielding complaints that it was difficult to arrange meetings with Pruitt in Washington, DC, because he was so rarely there. "The American people aren't paying taxes for part-time Cabinet officials," says Liz Purchia Gannon, who served as spokeswoman for former Obama EPA chief Gina McCarthy. The report shows that Pruitt would sometimes stay in Oklahoma three to five days, though he had only one official meeting on his schedule. Pruitt's appointment to the EPA was controversial because he frequently sued the agency as Oklahoma's AG.