President Petersen Continues Legal Battle Against Unlawful Land Grab in Northern Arizona

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                 

Wednesday, May 14, 2025

President Petersen Continues Legal Battle Against

Unlawful Land Grab in Northern Arizona

PHOENIX, ARIZONA— Senate President Warren Petersen is continuing a legal battle against an unlawful, dictator-style land grab in northern Arizona by the Biden-Harris Administration that occurred in 2023.

In a brief filed today in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the Arizona Legislature argues to reverse Biden's confiscation of nearly a million acres of land within Coconino and Mohave Counties, now designated as a "national monument." The unlawful designation will result in fewer jobs, diminished state trust land values, and billions in lost tax revenue, undermining the district court's conclusion that the lawsuit failed to establish an injury for federal standing purposes.

"Former President Joe Biden and his army of radical bureaucrats abused their constitutional authority on countless levels during his failed administration. Their infatuation with locking up federal lands from productive uses is a prime example of the harm inflicted on states like Arizona," said President Petersen. "As we have argued throughout this case, Biden's maneuver had nothing to do with protecting actual artifacts. This was an attempt to halt all mining, ranching, and other local uses of federal lands that are critical to our energy independence from adversary foreign nations, our food supply, and the strength of our economy. Republicans in the Arizona Legislature will continue to fight these actions to free our state from the grasp radical environmentalists had over the previous administration. Thankfully, we now have President Donald J. Trump in office, who has a consistent track record of safeguarding state sovereignty and promoting common-sense uses of federal land. I am continuing to work with his administration in an effort to end this legal battle."

The Biden Administration's land seizure was a violation of the Antiquities Act, which allows presidents to reserve small tracts of federal land to protect historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures, or other objects of historic or scientific interest. Under the Act, the president is to reserve "the smallest area compatible with the proper care and management of the objects to be protected." The coalition asserted this did not happen, and the guardrails Congress established to create a check on the president's power were violated.

Joining the lawsuit with President Petersen on behalf of the Arizona State Legislature are House Speaker Steve Montenegro, State Treasure Kimberly Yee, Mohave County, and the towns of Colorado City and Fredonia.

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For more information, contact:

Kim Quintero

Director of Communications | Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus

kquintero@azleg.gov