On Friday, a coalition of states along with energy industry groups took legal action against the Biden administration, filing a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.
This case challenges two presidential memoranda that intend to restrict oil and gas leasing on over 627 million acres of offshore waters.
The plaintiffs assert that these withdrawals exceed the president’s authority as defined by the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) and infringe upon key constitutional principles, particularly regarding the separation of powers and the Property Clause.
Coalition of Plaintiffs
The group comprises Republican-led states including Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, and Mississippi, along with organizations like the American Petroleum Institute and the Gulf Energy Alliance.
These coastal states heavily rely on the revenue generated from offshore energy production as prescribed by OCSLA.
The lawsuit claims that the administration’s proposed actions could lead to severe economic fallout, threatening jobs in sectors tied to offshore oil and gas ventures.
Additionally, the plaintiffs argue that such withdrawals hinder states from managing their economic interests and environmental factors, a concern they believe was acknowledged by Congress when OCSLA was enacted.
Legal Arguments Against Presidential Memoranda
Central to their argument is the Property Clause in the U.S. Constitution, which grants Congress the exclusive right to manage federal lands and resources.
The plaintiffs contend that President Biden’s memoranda violate this clause by designating vast areas of the outer continental shelf as permanently off-limits to leasing, all without clear congressional authorization.
While they acknowledge that OCSLA provides the president with the power to withdraw specific areas from leasing, they insist that this power is limited and should not undermine the Act’s central goal of promoting the “expeditious and orderly development” of offshore resources.
Nature of the Lawsuit
Moreover, the plaintiffs view the withdrawal orders as an unconstitutional shift of legislative power.
Although Congress can delegate certain authority to the executive branch, it must provide specific guidelines for its exercise.
They argue that OCSLA’s provision allowing the president to “withdraw from disposition any of the unleased lands of the Outer Continental Shelf” lacks adequate limitations or criteria.
As a result, they claim this provision could give the president nearly unchecked authority to impose leasing bans at any time and for any reason, potentially indefinitely.
The plaintiffs argue that Biden’s decision to restrict over 627 million acres highlights the dangers of such broad authority.
Ultimately, the lawsuit seeks an injunction to block the enforcement of these withdrawal orders.
This legal move builds on previous challenges to the Biden administration’s attempts to halt oil and gas leasing, which were dismissed by the same court in 2022.
Source: Jurist