West Virginia's Capitol Hill Republicans ask Supreme Court to restart MVP

WASHINGTON — West Virginia's two senators and two U.S. representatives now have filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the Mountain Valley Pipeline's completion.

U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., filed his amicus brief on Tuesday. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and U.S. Reps. Carol Miller and Alex Mooney, both R-W.Va., as well as six other members of Congress filed a similar amicus Wednesday.

The project’s developers recently filed an emergency application to Chief Justice John Roberts asking to have two stays issued by the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals lifted.

On July 11, the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals again halted construction of the 303-mile pipeline, which is nearly 95% complete, despite Congress’s and President Biden’s explicit approval of the project through the passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, according to a news release from Republicans on the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, of which Capito is ranking member.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission gave approval for construction to resume on the pipeline on July 9.

Joining Capito, Miller and Mooney on the brief were U.S. Reps. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Pa., Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., Bill Johnson, R-Ohio, John Joyce, R-Pa., Mike Kelly, R-Pa., and Dan Meuser, R-Pa.

“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 in a statement.

"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,” Capito said.

Added Miller: “Because of the bipartisan Fiscal Responsibility Act, the Mountain Valley Pipeline will be completed. 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 that “liberal activist lawsuits and bureaucratic red tape have long held up the Mountain Valley Pipeline, despite the project already clearing several agency permitting hurdles. 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. The Supreme Court should recognize that Congress already resolved this matter."

Manchin, who helped get provisions mandating completion of the long-delayed pipeline into the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, said he’s confident the nation’s highest court will rule on the side of the pipeline.

“It’s a shame when members of Congress have to ask the Supreme Court to intervene to maintain the credibility of the laws that we have passed and the president has signed, but I am confident that the court will uphold our laws and allow construction of MVP to resume,” Manchin said in a statement.

Project developers argue that the Fourth Circuit “lacked jurisdiction to issue” the stays, citing Section 324 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

The Fiscal Responsibility Act, the package passed by Congress at the beginning of June following an impasse over raising the nation’s borrowing limit, required the issuance of all federal permits required for the stalled pipeline to resume construction.

In his 15-page amicus brief, Manchin reiterates that “Section 324 constitutes a statutory determination that ‘the timely completion of construction and operation of the Mountain Valley Pipeline is required in the national interest.’”

Manchin also notes that Section 324 “ratifies and approves all authorizations, permits” and other approvals necessary to complete construction of the pipeline and allow it to begin operation.

“Section 324 is a valid Act of Congress and should be given legal effect,” the brief reads.

The motion requesting the stays halting work on the pipeline were filed by lawyers for a coalition of environmental groups, including the Sierra Club and Appalachian Voices.

“Congress’s unprecedented end run around the courts attempted to forgo proper checks and balances and declare the sinking ship that is the MVP a winner,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous. “This, as we know, was wrong from the start. Congress cannot mandate that federal regulators throw caution to the wind — environmental laws are more than just mere suggestions, and must be adhered to.”

Manchin, discussing the Fiscal Responsibility Act on May 30, said its passage would cause all legal challenges against the project to be dismissed.

“The way it has been written, it prohibits judicial review of permits needed to construct the MVP,” Manchin said. “This prohibition extends to cases that are ongoing in the Fourth Circuit of Appeals, which should be dismissed if this bill passes.”

The MVP’s route includes Braxton, Doddridge, Fayette, Greenbrier, Harrison, Lewis, Monroe, Nicholas, Summers, Webster and Wetzel counties.

The project has faced repeated delays, setbacks and halts due to regulatory challenges brought by environmental activists and other stakeholders opposed to the pipeline.

When the project was initially announced in 2014, developers said it was expected to cost around $3.5 billion and would be completed by the end of 2018.