Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against the Biden Administration, taking a stand against what he views as an overreach that threatens the state’s vital oil and gas industries. The suit targets the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and various administration officials over the classification of the dunes sagebrush lizard as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
This move by Paxton reflects the ongoing conflict between federal regulatory actions and the economic interests of Texas. According to Paxton, the Wildlife Service did not use the best available scientific and commercial data when designating the dunes sagebrush lizard as endangered. This omission, he argues, led to arbitrary conclusions that disregard the voluntary conservation efforts already in place at the state and local levels. The result is increased regulatory uncertainty for Texas industries and landowners in the Permian Basin, a critical area for the state’s economic development.
On July 25, Paxton notified the Biden Administration that the listing violated the ESA and that legal action would follow if the classification was not corrected. Since the federal government has not retracted the listing, the lawsuit claims that the agencies acted arbitrarily and capriciously, violating the ESA and the Administrative Procedure Act.
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s unlawful misuse of environmental law is a backdoor attempt to undermine Texas’s oil and gas industries, which help keep the lights on for America,” Paxton stated. “I warned that we would sue over this illegal move, and now we will see them in court.”
The Texas Nationalist Movement sees this legal battle as a crucial effort to assert state sovereignty and protect economic freedom from federal overreach. It aligns with our mission to achieve Texas independence and ensures that Texans maintain control over their resources and land. As this case unfolds, it serves as a reminder of the importance of independence to support Texas’s economic interests and preserve our way of life.
