CHARLESTON — West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey’s has filed a brief asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take action to restart construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
“The Fourth Circuit court does not have jurisdiction to rule on this as Congress made it clear that the permits are approved, and any challenge to the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 pertaining to the pipeline must be heard in the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit,” Morrisey said in a July 24 press release. “The Mountain Valley Pipeline is vital to the survival of American energy independence and affects thousands of jobs in West Virginia — its completion is also critical to our national security, the urgent need is for it to be completed as soon as possible.”
The AG’s brief urges the Supreme Court to uphold the crystal-clear intent of the act.
“It’s well within Congress’s power to approve the permits and direct all the challenges to the Act to the D.C. Circuit,” Morrisey said. “Non-completion denies West Virginia the plethora of much needed economic benefits.”
Morrisey’s office says completion of the pipeline, which begins from the gas fields in northwestern West Virginia then heads into interstate connections in Virginia, would reduce energy costs for millions of American homes and stimulate state economies, including West Virginia’s.
According to America First Policy Institute, the pipeline is expected to provide an additional $45 million in annual tax revenue to West Virginia and Virginia, and have a delivery capacity of 2 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas.
Last week, West Virginia’s Republican contingent in Washington – U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito and U.S. Reps. Carol Miller and Alex Mooney – joined representatives from Ohio, Pennsylvania and South Carolina in a similar brief. U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) also filed a similar brief last week.
Earlier this, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals again halted construction of the 303-mile pipeline that is almost 95% complete, despite legislative and executive support of the project with the passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the resumption of construction earlier this month as well.
MVP construction temporarily stopped with the 4th Circuit ruling. Developers then filed a request for an emergency intervention with Chief Justice John Roberts.
“By filing this amicus brief, my colleagues and I are speaking directly to the Supreme Court, urging them to uphold the clear intent of the language we included in the bipartisan Fiscal Responsibility Act, which was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden,” Capito said. “Unfortunately, activist judges on the Fourth Circuit and radical environmental groups will stop at nothing to delay the Mountain Valley Pipeline, and it’s necessary to once again fight for the completion of this critical, job-creating energy project.
Miller agreed.
“Because of the bipartisan Fiscal Responsibility Act, the Mountain Valley Pipeline will be completed,” she said. “The Fourth Circuit no longer has any jurisdiction over the Mountain Valley Pipeline, and Republicans are fighting back.
“While it is unfortunate that this amicus brief and case are necessary, I look forward to the Supreme Court coming to a swift decision confirming Congress’ intent to increase domestic energy production, particularly in West Virginia. I continue to encourage the parties involved with construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline to ignore the fourth circuit and complete production as scheduled.”
Mooney said the Supreme Court needs to recognize Congress already has resolved the issue.
“Liberal activist lawsuits and bureaucratic red tape have long held up the Mountain Valley Pipeline, despite the project already clearing several agency permitting hurdles,” he said. “Congress was clear when it said that judicial review of the Mountain Valley Pipeline was over. This pipeline is as much about West Virginia jobs as it is about American energy independence.”
Environmental group The Wilderness Society has filed two lawsuits claiming multiple environmental violations and arguing permits for the project were flawed. The group also maintains Congress has violated the U.S. Constitution separation of powers by intervening in the matter. The 4th Circuit stay was issued to give time to look into those matters.
But pipeline developers then asked Roberts to vacate the 4th Circuit stay. He asked the environmental groups to file a response by July 25.
Still, the 4th Circuit has scheduled oral arguments in the cases for July 27 in Richmond.
U.S. Supreme Court case number 23A35