Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, has urged the panel's chair, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to delay the confirmation hearing for Chris Wright, President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for energy secretary, Politico reported.

Heinrich said the committee has not yet seen critical documentation, including final FBI background checks, financial disclosures, and ethics agreements.

In a Wednesday letter, Heinrich wrote, "The American people deserve transparency on the individuals nominated to serve them in the incoming administration.

"As members of the U.S. Senate, you and I have a solemn obligation to fulfill our constitutional duties to advise and consent to these nominees. That cannot happen without the information necessary to properly consider these nominees."

The hearing for Wright, CEO of Liberty Energy, a fracking services company, is scheduled for Jan. 15.

Heinrich also criticized Lee for planning a Jan. 14 hearing for Interior Secretary-nominee Doug Burgum, despite what he described as incomplete documentation for Burgum.

Lee defended the decision to proceed, saying that North Dakota Gov. Burgum submitted his paperwork to the Office of Government Ethics the previous week. In a Wednesday statement, Lee accused Heinrich and other Democrats of deliberately stalling the confirmation process.

"I have made every effort to work with our Democratic colleagues, but we won't give in to delays that undermine the American people's mandate," Lee said. "It's time to move forward and focus on solutions that will unleash America's full energy potential, and I hope Democrats will work with us to deliver results for the American people."

Lee assured reporters that Burgum's paperwork would be received before the hearing and did not comment on the status of Wright's documentation.

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