Missouri AG files suit challenging Obama Administration land regulations

Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley announced Tuesday that Missouri filed suit challenging the Obama Administration rules that expand federal power over farm land.

The rules expand the definition of “critical habitat” for endangered and threatened species.

They would allow the federal government to designate any land as “critical habitat” for endangered species if the government determines the land might host an endangered species in the future.

Missouri joins 19 other states in the suit against the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Secretary of Commerce and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

“These sweeping regulations, adopted in the final days of the Obama Administration, are a startling power grab that could affect every farmer in Missouri,” Hawley said. “The rules are not authorized by law. They will hurt our farmers and our workers and cost Missouri jobs.”