SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Aug. 11, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A federal judge has dismissed Utah’s lawsuit challenging presidential authority to restore boundaries for the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments.
Attorney General Sean Reyes filed the lawsuit in August 2022 over what he called President Joe Biden‘s “unlawful designation of the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments” in southern Utah.
U.S. District Court Judge David Nuffer dismissed the case Friday, saying “Biden’s judgment in drafting and issuing the Proclamations as he sees fit is not an action reviewable by a district court.”
The Utah Attorney General’s Office issued a statement following the ruling, saying it “respectfully but strongly disagrees with the court’s order.”
“We will appeal the dismissal in order to stand up against President Biden’s egregious abuse of the Antiquities Act,” the statement reads.
Gov. Spencer Cox echoed Reyes’ vow to appeal.
“This case will ultimately be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court,” Cox said, “and today’s ruling helps us get there even sooner. The clear language of the law gives the president the authority only to designate monuments that are ‘the smallest area compatible with the proper care and management of the objects to be protected.’
“Monument designations over a million acres are clearly outside that authority and end up ignoring local concerns and damaging the very resources we want to protect. We look forward to starting the appeals process immediately and will continue fighting this type of glaring misuse of the Antiquities Act.”
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument was created in 1996 by President Bill Clinton, and President Barack Obama created Bears Ears National Monument in 2016.
The boundaries for both monuments was reduced by former President Donald Trump in 2018, but President Biden restored the boundaries in 2021. The lawsuit challenges Biden’s authority to restore the boundaries.
