More than a dozen state Republican attorneys general say they are reviewing whether to sue the Biden administration over its decision to cancel a permit for the Keystone XL pipeline.
In the meantime, the attorneys called on President Biden to reconsider his decision to nix the pipeline, which they said in a letter to him Tuesday would result in “devastating damage” to states and localities.
The state attorneys said Montana will likely lose $58 million in tax revenue and added that five of the six affected counties in the state are “designated high-poverty areas.”
The 2,000-mile Keystone XL pipeline would have delivered oil from Alberta in western Canada to be refined on the Gulf Coast of Texas, but it would also pass through Montana, South Dakota, and Nebraska.
“So your decision to shut down the project means less money for schools, less money for public services, and the elimination of business and job opportunities in those areas where they are most needed,” said the attorneys, who faulted Biden for not consulting with states on the decision.
The states also argue the administration has not proven how canceling the pipeline would advance Biden’s goals to curb emissions causing climate change, accusing Biden of pursuing a “symbolic act of virtue signaling to special interests and the international community.”
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen led the letter and was joined by Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, West Virginia, Louisiana, Texas, South Carolina, South Dakota, Mississippi, and Missouri.
