Lawsuit challenges Colorado land use plan due to Pendley's involvement
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
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William Perry Pendley, BLM Deputy Director for Policy and Programs. Photo: BLM.gov
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A coalition of conservation and citizen groups is challenging the legality of the Bureau of Land Management's resource management plan for the Uncompahgre field office in southern Colorado on the basis that William Perry Pendley was improperly exercising the authority of director of the BLM when the plan was finalized.
The Colorado lawsuit follows a recent federal court ruling in Montana that found Pendley had served illegally as acting director of the BLM for more than a year because he hadn’t been confirmed by the United States Senate and didn’t fall in the permitted category of people who can serve as acting director. Federal Judge Brian Morris ruled that three Montana land use plans must be put on hold because of Pendley's involvement.
Melissa Hornbein, a staff attorney with the Western Environmental Law Center who is representing the conservation groups in the Colorado lawsuit said, "Pendley’s authority as bureau director is invalid and planning decisions approved on his watch are likewise invalid. The RMP is blatant in its disregard of the law, and our new claim merely reflects the fact that its legal failings stem from Pendley’s unlawful leadership of the bureau.”
Conservation groups are suggesting that at least 16 resource management plans and other actions covering more than 30 million acres are subject to potential legal challenges because of Pendley’s involvement.
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