PHOENIX — Arizona is now part of a multistate lawsuit accusing the Trump administration of declaring a “fake” energy emergency to benefit Big Oil.
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes joined the coalition of 14 other attorneys general on Friday, according to an announcement from her office.
The lawsuit alleges that President Donald Trump is trying to push forward energy projects that would damage the environment.
This is the fourth lawsuit Mayes filed this week bringing lawsuits against the Trump administration to 18.
“This so-called emergency is nothing more than a political stunt designed to benefit fossil fuel companies at the expense of Arizonans’ health and safety,” Mayes said in a press release.
The lawsuit is seeking for the courts to order the declaration illegal and terminate emergency permits.
“Arizona will not stand by while the federal government trashes environmental safeguards, endangers tribal lands and undermines clean energy in favor of outdated, polluting fuels,” Mayes said.
Energy production is at a record high, and Trump’s order would lead to higher prices as well as the destruction and pollution of public lands, Mayes said.
Other lawsuits Arizona has joined against the Trump administration are over halting funding for electric vehicle infrastructure and health care.
Why did Trump declare an energy emergency and how is Arizona affected?
The same day Trump was inaugurated, he declared a national energy emergency, which is a part of the National Emergencies Act.
The act was put into place to prevent presidents from misusing their powers for political gain, which Mayes said Trump is doing.
Under Trump’s orders, federal agencies can bypass environmental safeguards including the Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and the National Historic Preservation Act.
These laws protect the state’s rivers, wildlife and tribal lands, Mayes said.
Historically, energy emergency declarations are reserved for natural disasters, such as hurricanes and catastrophic oil spills.
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