US: Biden sued by 12 states after climate change order

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - A group of 12 states in the US on Monday filed a lawsuit against President Joe Biden's climate change executive order, claiming it would damage the American economy and the states' energy industries.

The group argued that the president and his administration do not have the authority to assert and expand their federal regulatory power to US states.

They also claimed that Biden's climate change regulations would have a significant economic impact on the world's largest oil and natural gas producer.

State attorneys general from Missouri, Arkansas, Arizona, Indiana, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah are involved in the lawsuit filed by Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt.

“Manufacturing, agriculture, and energy production are essential to Missouri’s economy and employ thousands of hard-working Missourians across the state," Schmitt said in a statement.

The suit stressed if Biden's order stands, it will cause trillions of dollars of damage to the US economy for decades by destroying jobs, restraining energy production, and preventing America's energy independence.

Biden's order, titled "Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis," revoked permit for Keystone oil pipeline extension, temporarily prohibited drilling in the Arctic, and ordered federal agencies to comply with the administration's environmental policies.