Pruitt Leads Fight Against EPA “Sue and Settle”
Oklahoma attorney general, 11 others file lawsuit against EPA over ‘sue and settle’ tactics
By Paul Monies
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt joined Republican colleagues from 11 other states Tuesday in filing a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency related to what they call the agency’s “sue and settle” strategy for regulation.
Pruitt and the other attorneys general sent an information request in August asking the EPA for records that could show whether the agency was encouraging environmental groups to sue it for missing regulatory and statutory deadlines.
The practice, dubbed “sue and settle” by Pruitt and other critics of the Obama administration, contends the EPA settled lawsuits brought over missed deadlines with consent decrees that are stricter than the original regulations.
“It’s a regulation-through-litigation type of initiative,” Pruitt said at a news conference in Oklahoma City. “Friendly lawsuits apparently are being encouraged. We were concerned because our due process, as a state and citizens of Oklahoma, were potentially being affected adversely. And not just Oklahoma, but 11 other states.”