After over 16 months in office, EPA administrator Scott Pruitt announced his resignation on July 5. The announcement was made public in a Tweet sent by President Trump, which stated, "I have accepted the resignation of Scott Pruitt as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Within the Agency Scott has done an outstanding job, and I will always be thankful to him for this."

At the beginning of his tenure, Pruitt set forth a "back-to-basics agenda" centered around three objectives: refocusing the agency back to its core mission, restoring power to the states and adhering to the rule of law while improving agency processes.

In a recent letter to the president explaining his decision, Pruitt wrote, "the unrelenting attacks on me personally, my family, are unprecedented and have taken a toll on all of us."

President Trump announced in another Tweet that Pruitt will be replaced by Andrew Wheeler, a former coal and energy lobbyist. In the past, Wheeler served on Capital Hill as a Republican staff member and as an aide to Senator Jim Inhofe.

While the president is able to appoint a new administrator, the Senate must approve of the decision by voting on it. Pruitt was sworn into office in February 17, 2017 with a 52-46 vote after being nominated by the president as well.