Leave NEPA alone, former officials tell Supreme Court

By Lesley Clark | 10/25/2024 04:24 PM EDT

Senior federal officials who served under Democrats and Republicans say the environmental review may need some tweaking, but the high court should leave change to Congress.

The U.S. Supreme Court is seen in Washington, D.C.

The Supreme Court is seen in Washington on Jan. 2. Francis Chung/POLITICO

A group of senior officials who served under Democratic and Republican presidents are urging the Supreme Court to recognize the value of federal environmental reviews and leave it to Congress to make any changes.

The concerns are detailed in a friend of the court brief filed in the closely watched case Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, which the court is scheduled to hear in December.

Signees include Obama-era Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and Dale Hall, who was U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service director under George W. Bush.

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The coalition is appealing a lower court ruling requiring a more rigorous National Environmental Policy Act review of the Uinta Basin Railway, a project designed to carry oil out of the Utah region to coastal ports or refineries.

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