(The Center Square) – The U.S. Department of Justice filed a legal motion this week asking to end a legal battle over the Biden administration’s blockage of new liquefied natural gas sites because President-elect Donald Trump is expected to end the ban.
The Biden administration in January announced a pause on new export sites for liquefied natural gas, citing climate change concerns. The U.S. is a major exporter of LNG.
The broad ban sparked criticism from Republicans and the industry, which is a significant employer in the U.S. and supplier of daily energy needs for Americans.
Soon, the ban faced a lawsuit as critics argued that while the Biden administration could deny individual permits, a sweeping pause was a policy decision beyond its authority.
With Trump on the way to the White House and with his outspoken pro-energy rhetoric, the DOJ filed a legal motion this week admitting that the issue is probably “moot” given the new administration.
“A stay will also preserve the Court’s resources,” the DOJ said “If it grants a stay, the Court will likely avoid adjudicating administrative record and summary judgment disputes that will likely become moot in a matter of months.”
The Center Square previously reported that a federal judge has already agreed with the states suing the administration, saying that the ban was illegal, and was implemented “completely without reason or logic and is perhaps the epiphany of ideocracy.”
A coalition of lawmakers and state leaders sent letters to the Biden administration earlier this year calling for an end to the pause.
“No federal officer or agency has the authority to enact a blanket ban on the approval of LNG export applications,” Loren Seehase, Senior Counsel at the Liberty Justice Center, said in a statement. “The Biden Administration disregarded federal law and the Constitution by immediately and indefinitely halting the approval process.”
Earlier this week, lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee held a hearing on the LNG pause as Republicans blasted
Seehase is optimistic that the ban could be ended.
“We look forward to seeing this unconstitutional ban struck down—whether through the courts or by the incoming President—and see this as a major victory for the rule of law and for the tens of thousands of Americans across the country whose livelihoods rely on the oil and gas industry,” Seehase said.