Republican Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich sued the Biden Administration Monday, alleging the administration’s border policies were violating environmental regulations.
The suit was filed against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and federal officials for allegedly violating the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Brnovich alleges halting construction on the border wall violated the NEPA.
The motion asks the court to deem Biden’s order halting border construction and ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy as void. (RELATED: 40 GOP Senators Allege Biden’s Border Wall Freeze Is Illegal)
“It’s the pinnacle of hypocrisy for the Biden Administration to claim it wants to protect our environment, while not enforcing federal statutes that are specifically designed for that purpose,” Brnovich said in a statement. “We’re not going to sit idly by as the Biden Administration ignores real harms to our state resulting from its heavy-handed executive orders.”
Brnovich said halting border wall construction has led migrants to cross into Arizona “in greater numbers than ever before.” Brnovich said population growth has “significant environmental impacts” and the Biden Administration “did not provide environmental impact statements or environmental assessments” when they halted Trump-era policies.
A photo taken on March 30, 2021 shows a general view of an unfinished section of a border wall that former US president Donald Trump tried to build near the southern Texas border city of Roma. -(ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images)
He also alleged the administration did not provide any policy impact related to the ‘Remain in Mexico‘ policy which forced asylum seekers to make their asylum claim from Mexico or another country.