Grand Canyon Times

Arizona Senate President Warren Peterson (R) and House Speaker Ben Toma (R) filed an amicus brief on Nov. 6 in the Tenth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in support of a lawsuit by the State of Utah that challenges President Joe Biden's (D) use of the Antiquities Act.

The Antiquities Act of 1906 empowers the President to designate national monuments on federal land to protect historic landmarks, structures, and objects of historical or scientific interest. The lawsuit contends that President Biden overstepped his authority by designating over three million acres of Utah as two national monuments, which comprise more than 5% of the state, reported Federal Newswire.

The case specifically targets the designations of Grand Staircase-Escalante (1.87 million acres) and Bears Ears (1.36 million acres), arguing that Biden's rationale for considering entire landscapes as "objects" under the Act is unprecedented.

Additionally, the White House announced Biden’s designation of nearly 1 million acres in northern Arizona as Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument. This land, previously managed by the Bureau of Land Management and U.S Forest Service, holds significant cultural and historical importance for Indigenous tribes in the Grand Canyon region.

Petersen has been vocal in his criticism of Biden's actions, particularly regarding the Arizona designation. In September, he condemned the President's move as a "dictator-style land grab," accusing Biden of using the monument designation to block mining and agriculture under the guise of protecting the Grand Canyon. He pledged to fight the designation in court, asserting that the decision was more about fulfilling political agendas than genuine conservation efforts.

In their amicus brief, Petersen and Toma argue against the broad application of the Antiquities Act, likening Biden's use of the law to historical mandates in medieval England that reserved extensive forest areas for royal use. Their involvement in the Utah lawsuit underscores the growing opposition among some state leaders to federal land management decisions, particularly those that significantly alter the scope and scale of national monuments. This legal challenge represents a key moment in the ongoing debate over the balance of power between federal and state authorities in land management and conservation efforts.