Central ND News

North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley has expressed approval of a recent decision by the North Dakota District Court to invalidate the Biden Administration's NEPA Rule. The contested rule aimed to alter the NEPA review process for projects with federal involvement, introducing considerations such as "environmental justice" into what has traditionally been a procedural review since its inception in the 1970s.

The lawsuit against this rule change was initiated by North Dakota, Iowa, and 19 other states during the summer, with their complaint filed in the District of North Dakota. The court's ruling nullifies the rule nationwide, determining that several elements exceeded the Center for Environmental Quality’s authority and were deemed arbitrary and capricious.

Moreover, the court concurred with the states' assertion that the Center for Environmental Quality does not possess rulemaking authority. The court stated: “for the past forty years all three branches of government operated under the erroneous assumption that CEQ had authority. But now everyone knows the state of the emperor’s clothing and it is something we cannot unsee.”

Attorney General Wrigley commented on this outcome saying, “This decision is great for North Dakota, but also great for economic and infrastructure development around the entire country.” He criticized what he described as an attempt by the previous administration to politicize federal bureaucracy by mandating considerations like ‘environmental justice’ in permitting decisions. Wrigley praised the district court for recognizing that agencies cannot create rules without congressional authorization.