WASHINGTON — President Trump has tapped a new chairman for the federal panel that oversees some of the most closely watched development projects in the nation’s capital, including the White House ballroom now under construction and a proposed triumphal arch near the Potomac River.
Mark Paoletta was appointed Wednesday to lead the National Capital Planning Commission, adding another influential role to an already crowded portfolio. He currently holds four other administration positions, among them general counsel of the White House Office of Management and Budget.
Paoletta succeeds Will Scharf, who is moving into his new post as White House counsel.
A longtime Trump loyalist, Paoletta remained aligned with the president during his years outside Washington’s governing establishment. He is also among the small circle of officials, along with OMB Director Russ Vought, who returned last year to the same job he held during Trump’s first administration.
“I am honored to be appointed by President Trump to serve as Chairman of the NCPC,” Paoletta said.
“President Trump has transformed DC into a Capital worthy of the greatest nation in history. I look forward to working with my new colleagues to further the president’s historic restoration and beautification of the National Capital Region, especially in the 250th year of our country’s independence.”
Paoletta’s appointment reflects a broader pattern inside the administration, where several high-profile figures have taken on expanding management responsibilities. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is among the most prominent examples of that approach.
In addition to his OMB role, Paoletta is serving as acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency the Trump administration has sought to sharply reduce or close. He is also chief legal officer of USAID, which was largely dismantled and folded into the State Department last year, though it has not formally been abolished.
In addition, he is acting administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, the federal office that reviews proposed regulations.
Paoletta has a long history in conservative legal circles and is a friend of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, whose 1991 nomination he helped guide as an assistant counsel to President George HW Bush.
His work at the NCPC will touch a wide range of proposed projects in the DC area, from shepherding the under-review arch near the Lincoln Memorial and overseeing security upgrades to Lafayette Park north of the White House to more mundane matters like alleyway access.
Other projects within the board’s oversight include the controversial ongoing Federal Reserve building renovation, a possible expansion of the National Zoo and the replacement of the former RFK stadium with an arena for DC’s professional football team.
Scharf, the outgoing chairman, became nationally well-known as Trump’s staff secretary, giving concise on-camera descriptions of the impact of various policy changes being adopted before Trump would sign the orders in the Oval Office.
Paoletta appears less frequently on camera, but joined Trump in February to announce the rollback of a regulation that underpins federal greenhouse gas restrictions, declaring: “This is the model of the Trump administration: everyone working together, mission aligned.”
