A federal judge ruled on Friday that聽William Perry Pendley, the acting director of the Bureau of Land Management and an outspoken climate change denier, has occupied his post unlawfully for months and must step down immediately.
The ruling comes 424 days after the Trump administration appointed聽Pendley on a聽“temporary” basis to lead the BLM, which oversees聽245 million acres of federal public land.聽Pendley was the fifth interim appointee to lead the agency in the last four years.
The lawsuit leading to聽Pendley’s removal was brought by聽Montana governor Steve Bullock and the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) in July. On September 25, chief district judge Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court of Montana ruled against Pendley in a 34-page聽decision, stating that聽Pendely’s unconfirmed appointment violates the聽Federal Vacancies Reform Act, which limits how long a temporary official can fill a vacant federal position without Senate confirmation.
鈥淸Pendley’s] ascent to acting BLM director did not follow any of the permissible paths set forth by the U.S. Constitution,” Morris ruled. “Pendley has not been nominated by the president and has not been confirmed by the Senate.”
Pendley has drawn sharp criticism among environmentalists for his anti-scientific views on climate change and incendiary opinions about how the government should manage public lands.聽Under his direction, the BLM offered hundreds of leases to oil and gas companies on lands designated as wildlife habitat, according to last week’s court ruling. In 2016,聽Pendley聽wrote in the National Review聽that he believed 鈥渢he founding fathers intended all lands owned by the federal government to be sold.鈥 He has聽made statements vehemently attacking the scientific evidence for climate change, and has聽openly聽mocked court decisions protecting Native Americans’聽religious rights on federally controlled land.
His removal was heralded as an environmental victory by former vice president Joe Biden and many others.
Today is Public Lands Day and National Hunting and Fishing Day 鈥 and what better way to celebrate than the long overdue removal of William Perry Pendley from . It's a victory for everyone who values our public lands over those who want to exploit them for profit.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden)