The Trump team has signed a delayed transition agreement with the Biden White House, paving the way for Trump “landing teams” to head into federal agencies, President-elect Donald Trump’s chief of staff said Tuesday.
Now that Trump has selected his Cabinet nominees, Trump is “entering the next phase of his administration’s transition by executing a Memorandum of Understanding with President Joe Biden’s White House,” Trump’s incoming chief of staff, Susie Wiles, said in a statement.
“This engagement allows our intended Cabinet nominees to begin critical preparations, including the deployment of landing teams to every department and agency, and complete the orderly transition of power,” she said.
The transition agreement, which is typically finalized by candidates ahead of presidential elections, allows incoming teams to gain access to government buildings and briefing materials. The delay in finalizing the agreement prompted concerns among good-government advocates about an orderly handover of the executive branch.
The Trump team is rejecting some available transition resources, the transition team said Tuesday in an email. The team will not use taxpayer funding for transition costs and the team will not use government buildings or technology provided by the General Services Administration, the email said.
“The Transition already has existing security and information protections built in, which means we will not require additional government and bureaucratic oversight,” the transition team said.
The Trump team plans to post its ethics plan to the GSA website and the transition will disclose the members of its agency “landing teams” to the Biden administration.
Although the transition team will use private funding, it will publicly disclose the transition’s donors and will not accept foreign donations, the email said.
The White House and GSA did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
