Deregulatory Task Force Members

Brittany Bolen was counsel for the Senate’s Environment and Public Works committee, when it was chaired by Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK). — ProPublica

Scott Cameron founded and was president of a non-profit organization called the "Reduce Risks From Invasive Species Coalition," which has received money from Syngenta, a pesticide company that has been lobbying the Interior Department, and other industry groups. He also worked for Dawson and Associates and worked as an advisor to several companies, including an Interior contractor. Before that, he was at Interior himself. — ProPublica

James Cason has worked for the Interior Department under past Republican administrations, but had to withdraw from consideration for a post at the Department of Agriculture amid Democratic concerns about his environmental stances. — ProPublica

Stephen Cox was corporate counsel for Apache Corporation, a petroleum and natural gas exploration and production company, where, among other things, he gave advice on regulatory challenges and multiple state and federal investigations, according to his Linkedin profile. Before that, he served a stint in the Federal Bureau of Investigation and represented clients, including BP, as an attorney at the law firm WilmerHale, where he counseled multinational companies on compliance issues and investigations relating to anti­corruption laws, trade sanctions, export controls, political lobbying, immigration and hydraulic fracturing. — ProPublica

Michael Downing worked for the Pennsylvania Republican Party. — ProPublica

Bio, via General Services Administration:

Downing previously held a number of senior political and state government positions in Pennsylvania. Most recently, he served as the Deputy Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Republican Party. He formerly served as the Deputy Director of Public Liaison to the Governor of Pennsylvania, where he managed the executive nominations and appointments made by the Governor to more than 400 boards and commissions. Prior to this, Downing served as political outreach director and deputy political director for the Republican Party of Pennsylvania. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from Loyola College in Maryland.

Elaine Duke was principal of Elaine Duke & Associates, which provided acquisition and business consulting. Her prior experience, at DHS, was one of the firm's selling points. She had advocated policy reforms at the agency. — ProPublica

Holly Ham was a data adviser for the Trump campaign, and a sales executive for Hewlett-Packard, which has lobbied the Department of Education and has vied for agency contracts. The agency said that she didn't work on education policy at HP and has also recused herself from working on issues related to the company. — ProPublica

Bio, via White House via Internet Archive:

Ms. Ham has had a long career in private enterprise as a management consultant and sales executive at Hewlett-Packard Enterprise. Ms. Ham earned her BBA and MBA, with a focus on finance, from the University of Houston, graduating as a member of Beta Gamma Sigma. Ms. Ham is an APAWLI fellow through The Center for Asian Pacific American Women’s leadership program. Ms. Ham has long been involved in efforts supporting families and students in need, serving on the Board of Directors for Skills for Living, Inc. and advising the Board of Financial Mentors of America.

Ryan Jackson was a longtime aide to Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), and most recently his chief of staff. — ProPublica

Bio, via Environmental Protection Agency:

Mr. Jackson joined EPA after nearly 20 years working in the U.S. Senate, first as counsel to the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and later as chief of staff to U.S. Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma). As the staff director of the Committee, he coordinated a legislative and oversight plan for Chairman Inhofe that resulted in: the first long-term reauthorization of the nation’s surface transportation infrastructure in 10 years, the enactment of the Frank R Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act for the 21st Century (the first major federal environmental statute rewrite in 20 years), and a new Water Resources Development Act that prioritized funding for national ports and water infrastructure. In all, his leadership contributed to the enactment of over 60 statutes. While working in Congress, Mr. Jackson also worked closely with EPA on new state permitting for coal ash disposal and regulation, and on the reauthorization of the Brownfields program to promote beneficial use and new economic development for these areas. Previously, Mr. Jackson was an assistant district attorney in Oklahoma's 14th Judicial District, which covers Tulsa and Pawnee counties. A native of Oklahoma City, Mr. Jackson received his B.A. in public administration and political science from the University of Oklahoma, and his law degree from Oklahoma City University.

Candice Jackson worked for Judicial Watch and ran her own law firm. While at Stanford University, she wrote that she was disappointed that she was ineligible to join a study group because it was only offered to students of color. — ProPublica

Bio, via LinkedIn:

After developing excellent litigation skills with the non-profit legal watchdog organization Judicial Watch, I opened my own private practice in southern California, representing a diverse clientele in transactional and litigation matters ranging from anti-discrimination claims to business start-ups and film production. From March 2008 to August 2009, I worked for a premier West Coast law firm headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Bullivant Houser Bailey PC, where I expanded my practice to include Oregon and Washington clients. I am originally from the Pacific Northwest, so it has been wonderful being back in the Portland-Vancouver community representing clients up and down the West Coast in business, anti-discrimination, entertainment, and litigation matters. I have enjoyed working for a wide range of clients, from restaurants to medical clinics, and from authors and musicians to independent filmmakers and record labels, as well as employees, students, and citizens whose civil rights may have been violated. I also appreciate staying connected to my alma maters, Stanford University and Pepperdine University School of Law. I believe in being part of a team to help any person, business, or creative endeavor succeed, achieve dreams, correct injustices, and make the world a better place.

Daniel Jorjani previously worked for groups connected to the billionaire brothers Charles G. and David H. Koch, owners of a conglomerate that sells coal, gasoline and other products. The groups include the Charles Koch Institute, the Charles Koch Foundation and Freedom Partners, an organization of conservative political donors led by the Koch brothers. — ProPublica

Maren Kasper was previously a director at Roofstock, an Oakland-based online marketplace for investors in single-family rental properties, and continues to own up to a $50,000 stake in the company. Before that, she was an investment associate at Dwell Finance, a financing company for investors of single-family homes. The agency said that she moved in June from the task force to a new position, and formally recused herself from dealing with issues that would affect Roofstock. — ProPublica