Public lands chief ousted for serving unlawfully
BILLINGS, Mont. — A federal judge ruled Friday that President Trump’s leading steward of public lands has been serving unlawfully, blocking him from continuing in the position in the latest pushback against the administration’s practice of f illing key positions without U. S. Senate approval.
William Perry Pendley, acting director of the U. S. Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management, served unlawfully for 424 days without being conf irmed to the post by the Senate as required under the Constitution, U. S. District Judge Brian Morris determined.
The ruling came after Montana’s Democratic governor in July sued to remove Pendley, saying the former oil industry attorney was illegally overseeing an agency that manages almost a quarter- billion acres of land, primarily in the West.
“Today’s ruling is a win for the Constitution, the rule of law, and our public lands,” Gov. Steve Bullock said.
The ruling will be immediately appealed, according to Interior Department spokesman Conner Swanson. He called it “an outrageous decision that is well outside the bounds of the law,” and he said the Obama administration had similarly f illed key posts at the agency with temporary authorizations.
The bureau regulates activities including mining and oil extraction, livestock grazing and recreation. It’s been at the forefront of the Trump administration to loosen environmental restrictions for oil and gas drilling and other development on public lands.
Pendley has been one of several senior Trump administration officials, including acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf and his acting deputy, Ken Cuccinelli, who are running federal agencies and departments despite not having gone before the Senate for the conf irmation hearings that are required for top posts.
Trump agencies have defended the skipped deadlines for Senate hearings for administration nominees, saying that the senior officials involved were carrying out the duties of their acting position but were not f illing that position, and thus did not require a hearing and votes before the Senate.
Pendley had been publicly nominated by Trump to direct the land bureau in June. But the nomination was withdrawn earlier this month after the confirmation process threatened to become contentious.
But Pendley hung on to the post under an arrangement that he set up. In a May 22 order, Pendley made his own position, deputy director, the bureau’s top post while the director’s office is vacant.