Huffman orders 36 agencies and companies to preserve records as Trump-era probes carry into new Congress

With one Congress ending and another about to begin, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) moved to make sure the paper trail doesn't disappear with it. On November 10, 2026, Huffman — ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee — sent preservation letters to 36 federal agencies and private companies, ordering them to retain every document, communication, and record connected to the committee's investigations of the Trump administration.

For two years, this administration has stonewalled us and kept the American people in the dark while Democrats have fought tirelessly to daylight and stop their corruption. Those days of obstruction are over.— Rep. Jared Huffman, Ranking Member, House Natural Resources Committee

The letters are designed to bridge the gap between the 119th and 120th Congress — preserving evidence gathered or sought during two years of committee investigations so those probes can continue when the new Congress convenes in January. Federal agencies received instructions to comply with the Federal Records Act and to hold any additional materials relevant to congressional oversight. Private companies that had already been subjects of committee inquiries received parallel preservation requests.

The nine federal agencies targeted include the Bureau of Land Management, the Department of the Interior, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Park Service, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Forest Service.

The private-sector list is notably broad, spanning energy majors, defense contractors, tech platforms, financial firms, and nonprofits. Recipients include Chevron, ExxonMobil, Energy Fuels, Phorm Energy, Lithium Americas, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, RTX, Oracle, Palantir, SoftBank, TikTok Inc., TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, Deloitte, Mastercard, SAP, Exiger, January AI, iHeartMedia, John Deere, Mosaic, Penske, United Airlines, UnitedHealth Group, UFC, and the Trust for the National Mall, among others.

Bloomberg Law reported that several of those companies — including Boeing, Deloitte, John Deere, Palantir, UFC, and United Airlines — had previously been singled out by the committee for their roles as corporate sponsors of Freedom 250, the public-private partnership behind events celebrating the nation's semiquincentennial last summer. Others carry more direct regulatory stakes: Lithium Americas is involved in developing Nevada's Thacker Pass lithium mine, and Energy Fuels received a conditional financing commitment of $725 million from the Department of Defense's U.S. Office of Strategic Capital to expand operations at its White Mesa uranium mill in Utah, according to Bloomberg Law.

The timing of the letters is tied directly to alarm over potential evidence loss. Huffman cited reports that the Department of the Interior and other federal agencies may already be shredding official documents and using disappearing chat messages — practices that, if accurate, could destroy the very records investigators are seeking.

This is 100% false. The Department follows all federal records management obligations as directed by the Department's ethics officials.— Department of the Interior spokesperson

Democrats on the committee had also, in a November 5 post on X, listed ongoing probes they intend to pursue — among them investigations demanding answers on the administration's plans to open public lands to AI data center development and its critical minerals agreements, according to Bloomberg Law.

I am sending a message to President Trump and his allies: our investigations will continue full steam ahead. And to every agency official and corporate executive receiving these letters: save everything. The American people deserve to know what you did with their government and their money, and we intend to get them answers.— Rep. Jared Huffman, Ranking Member, House Natural Resources Committee

As a ranking member rather than committee chair, Huffman lacks subpoena power — meaning these letters carry moral and legal weight as preservation notices but cannot compel testimony or document production on their own. Whether the incoming 120th Congress gives Democrats the tools to enforce their investigations will depend on its composition and leadership. What the letters do accomplish now is create a documented record that recipients were formally notified of their obligation to preserve materials, a step that can matter significantly if destruction of records is later alleged.

Why it matters — The letters put dozens of major companies and federal agencies on formal notice that congressional investigators are watching — and that destroying records now could have serious legal consequences when the new Congress convenes.

Sources differ on Whether federal agencies are destroying or concealing records: Reports indicate the Department of the Interior and other agencies may be shredding documents and using disappearing chat messages. (huffman.house.gov) vs 'This is 100% false. The Department follows all federal records management obligations as directed by the Department's ethics officials.' (news.bloomberglaw.com)

Reported by house.gov, democrats-naturalresources.house.gov, huffman.house.gov, news.bloomberglaw.com