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RELEASE: BlueRibbon Coalition Files Motion for Summary Judgment in Case Challenging President Biden’s Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante Designations

Mar 16, 2023

Categories: Fight for Every Inch | Legal Update | Press Release | Uncategorized | Utah
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We keep them honest. If everyone only comments through the government/agency site, we have to take their word on how many comments were received. By submitting through BRC, we create an independent record of our community’s response that can’t be buried or under-reported.

We protect your voice. If this fight ends up in court, having our own record of submitted comments means we don’t have to wait a year or more for a government agency to turn over documents. We can move quickly with proof that thousands of you spoke up.
We keep you in the loop. When you comment through our site, we can send you updates on what comes next. If you only use the government/agency site, you’re depending on them to tell you what happens next — and they won’t.

Double coverage matters. Even if you’ve already commented through the government/agency site, submitting through ours makes your voice count twice — once in their system, and once in ours. That way they know the OHV community is watching and tracking every move.

For years, BRC has been trusted to run action alerts like this. Thousands of members and supporters have used this system effectively to defend access to public lands. This isn’t about collecting your info — it’s about building the strongest, most transparent record possible to hold agencies accountable.

Why you should submit here, even if you already have elsewhere!

We keep them honest. If everyone only comments through the government/agency site, we have to take their word on how many comments were received. By submitting through BRC, we create an independent record of our community’s response that can’t be buried or under-reported.

We protect your voice. If this fight ends up in court, having our own record of submitted comments means we don’t have to wait a year or more for a government agency to turn over documents. We can move quickly with proof that thousands of you spoke up.

We keep you in the loop. When you comment through our site, we can send you updates on what comes next. If you only use the government/agency site, you’re depending on them to tell you what happens next — and they won’t.

Double coverage matters. Even if you’ve already commented through the government/agency site, submitting through ours makes your voice count twice — once in their system, and once in ours. That way they know the OHV community is watching and tracking every move.

For years, BRC has been trusted to run action alerts like this. Thousands of members and supporters have used this system effectively to defend access to public lands. This isn’t about collecting your info — it’s about building the strongest, most transparent record possible to hold agencies accountable.

SALT LAKE CITY – Last week, the BlueRibbon Coalition (BRC), filed a motion for summary judgment in its challenge to President Biden’s unlawful proclamations expanding the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments. This lawsuit—which has been consolidated with a similar one by the State of Utah—contends that President Biden’s proclamations exceed his authority under the Antiquities Act.

“After reading the government’s response to our complaint, it is clear that they cannot identify any discernible limit to their theory of the President’s powers under the Antiquities Act,” BRC Executive Director, Ben Burr said. “But the Act includes careful limitations that the President is supposed to respect. By contrast, here, President Biden has sought to raze those limits in service of his own agenda.”

BRC’s motion for summary judgment clearly articulates how President Biden’s proclamations are both unprecedented and unlawful. The motion makes clear too that if the government’s theory of the Antiquities Act is allowed to stand, then the President’s powers under that Act would become effectively limitless, contrary to both Congress’s intent and the Constitution’s separation of powers.

BRC is looking forward to pressing these arguments before the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah.

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