August 12, 2022
A Montana federal judge Friday reinstated a halt on federal coal leasing that was imposed by the Obama administration and then gutted by the Trump administration, saying a federal review needs to be completed to analyze the environmental effects of rolling back the moratorium.
February 25, 2022
The Northern Cheyenne Tribe and environmental groups have asked a Montana federal judge to grant them a win in their suit over the rollback of a federal moratorium on coal mining, saying the government can't escape the need to conduct further environmental review by claiming the case is moot.
February 04, 2022
The Biden administration's decision to walk back a Trump-era order reversing a pause on federal coal sales hasn't, in turn, stopped new leasing, according to environmental groups and tribes that say their suit is plenty ripe to continue.
January 21, 2022
Wyoming and Montana have thrown their weight behind an effort to kill a lawsuit filed by environmentalists who want the Biden administration to put an end to federal coal leasing, arguing that the revocation of a Trump-era order makes the case moot.
January 14, 2022
Biden administration officials told a federal judge that lawsuits challenging the federal coal leasing program are moot since they've already revoked a Trump-era order to reopen public land to coal leasing and mining, while challengers berated the administration for driving its climate policy "into a brick wall" by refusing to issue a full moratorium on the program.
July 07, 2021
The National Mining Association has asked a Montana federal court to end challenges to a Trump-era move to restart the federal coal-leasing program, arguing that the matter is moot after the Biden administration revoked the order at issue.
June 03, 2021
A Montana federal judge on Thursday refused to pause litigation challenging a Trump-era U.S. Department of Interior decision restarting the federal coal-leasing program, ruling that ongoing coal leasing creates a "fair possibility" that a stay would damage those seeking to revive a ban on the practice.
July 20, 2020
Several state attorneys general, environmentalists and a Native American tribe on Monday regrouped and took another stab at attempting to revive an Obama-era moratorium on federal coal leasing after a federal judge recently shot down their initial attempt.
February 27, 2020
The U.S. Department of the Interior released its final environmental review Wednesday for the Trump administration's bid to lift an Obama-era coal leasing moratorium, setting the stage to restart a Montana federal court challenge by states, environmental groups and a Native American tribe.
July 23, 2019
Challengers of a Trump administration move to lift an Obama-era coal leasing moratorium want a Montana federal judge to undo the policy change after he found it lacked an adequate environmental review, but the U.S. Department of the Interior is pleading for patience as it finalizes a replacement.