Conservation groups sued the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday over its use of “illegal” and “unconstitutional” waivers to exempt President Trump’s border wall from dozens of environmental laws.
The lawsuit targets the Jan. 22 issuance of a waiver to build the New Mexico portion of the wall under Section 102 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, which the lawsuit called “unlawful because it exceeds the limited grant of authority for such waivers” under the law.
The lawsuit argues that Homeland Security’s interpretation of its waiver authority is so broad that it violates the Constitution.
“Any interpretation of Section 102 that would sanction the issuance of the New Mexico waiver would render this statutory provision so broad and unbounded in scope that it would run afoul of the constitutional principles of Separation of Powers, the Non-Delegation Doctrine, the Presentment Clause and other constitutional provisions,” according to the lawsuit filed in the federal D.C. District Court.
The lawsuit was led by the Center for Biological Diversity, which was the first group to sue the administration over the proposed border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. The initial lawsuit targeted the path of the wall, which the group argued would harm protected habitat and block species migration.
Thursday’s lawsuit targets the waiver authority that the administration is using to get around laws meant to protect species and consider the environmental impact. If the groups succeed in the lawsuit, it could significantly slow the construction of the border wall.
“Waiving these safeguards to rush construction of President Trump’s ill-conceived border wall will no doubt adversely impact the communities and wildlife along the border,” said Jason Rylander, senior attorney for Defenders of Wildlife, which filed Thursday’s suit with the Center for Biological Diversity.
The groups say the waiver allows the administration to ignore 25 laws so that it can speed construction of a 20-mile segment of the border wall in eastern New Mexico, which they refer to as “home to rare wildlife in one of the world’s most biodiverse deserts.”
