Patrick Morrisey Story Archives - Page 6 of 12 - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

AG Morrisey Takes Aim Against EPA Intrastate Water Regulations

A new rule from the EPA gives the agency more power over intrastate bodies of water, but Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is calling it federal overreach.

A new rule from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) gives the agency more power over intrastate bodies of water, but Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is calling it federal overreach.

The rule defines waters protected under the Clean Water Act. It expands the EPA’s authority over intrastate bodies of water like lakes, ponds, streams and wetlands.

The rule’s text says it “ensures critical protections for the nation’s vital resources, which support public health, environmental protection, agricultural activity and economic growth.”

Morrisey called the rule federal overreach during a press conference Thursday afternoon, arguing it takes jurisdiction away from states and would negatively affect economic and job growth, and that smaller bodies of water should be regulated differently than larger rivers. He says it could affect farmers, developers or other property owners who want to utilize waterways on their land.

“When you look at the way the rule is structured, we are very concerned once again, that this is targeting ephemeral streams, or even your backyard ditch,” Morrisey said.

The rule, formally titled “Revised Definition of ‘Waters of the United States,” is set to replace a rule put in place by the Trump administration called the “Navigable Waters Protection Rule,” which reduced the number of wetlands protected by the Clean Water Act on a federal level.

The rule is set to go into effect March 20, sixty days after its original publication in the federal register. The lawsuit is set to be filed in North Dakota, with West Virginia joining 23 other states.

Morrisey, Other State AGs Set To File Lawsuit Relating To Pistol Brace Regulation

Patrick Morrisey is one of more than 20 attorneys general set to file a lawsuit against the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). They look to overturn a January rule regulating stabilizing braces and similar accessories for pistols.

Stabilizing braces attach to ends of pistols, using velcro to attach around the forearm.

The ATF argues these accessories would effectively transform pistols into short-barreled rifles, which are regulated more strictly than handguns through extra taxation, registration and background checks.

The agency said pistols modified with braces should be treated the same way, saying short-barreled rifles have the power of longer guns but are easier to conceal.

“This rule enhances public safety and prevents people from circumventing the laws Congress passed almost a century ago,” ATF Director Steven Dettelbach said in a Jan. 13 statement announcing the rule, called Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached Stabilizing Braces. “In the days of Al Capone, Congress said back then that short-barreled rifles and sawed-off shotguns should be subjected to greater legal requirements than most other guns.”

Morrisey decried the rule as federal overreach during a live streamed conference Thursday afternoon, calling it a “completely nonsensical regulation.” He also argued these braces are meant to increase accuracy and prevent recoil, touting those who would otherwise have more trouble carrying firearms as examples.

“We should not be making it harder for senior citizens and people with disabilities — and many disabled veterans — to defend themselves,” Morrisey said.

The rule went into effect Jan. 31 when it was published in the Federal Register. The lawsuit challenging it is set to be filed in U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota Western Division.

Can EPA Still Cap CO2 Emissions After Ruling? AGs Split On Issue

The U.S. Supreme Court limited the agency's ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. However, the legal battle may not be over.

The U.S. Supreme Court limited the federal government’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. However, the legal battle may not be over.

Eight state attorneys general, all Democrats, wrote Michael Regan, the head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency late last month.

They urged him to issue limits for greenhouse gasses under another section of the Clean Air Act that allows the establishment of National Ambient Air Quality Standards.

They say that falls under the EPA’s authority and would not run afoul of the Supreme Court’s ruling in West Virginia v EPA. The justices ruled in June that the EPA may not regulate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants under Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and his Kentucky counterpart, Daniel Cameron, wrote to the EPA on Tuesday. They urged the agency to reject that approach.

Morrisey and Cameron were joined by 18 other Republican attorneys general.

W.Va. Lawsuit Against Opioid Makers Set To Start

Opening arguments are set in a lawsuit in West Virginia accusing several drugmakers of misrepresenting the risks and benefits of opioids.

The bench trial starts Monday in Attorney General Patrick Morrisey’s lawsuit against Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., Teva Pharmaceuticals Inc., Allergan and their family of companies.

The defendants are accused of engaging in strategic campaigns to deceive prescribers which led to opioids becoming a common treatment for chronic pain and fueled substance abuse in West Virginia. The state has the nation’s highest rate of drug overdose deaths.

The lawsuit alleges violations of the state Consumer Credit and Protection Act and accuses the companies of causing a public nuisance.

The trial in Kanawha County Circuit Court is expected to take up to two months.

Morrisey announced last week that the state had reached a $26 million settlement with another defendant, Endo Health Solutions Inc. In similar lawsuits, the state reached a $37 million settlement with distributor McKesson Corp. in 2019, and $20 million with Cardinal Health Inc. and $16 million with AmerisourceBergen Drug Co. in 2017.

Supreme Court Hears West Virginia Case Challenging EPA Authority Over Power Plants

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Monday in West Virginia v. EPA.

Attorney General Patrick Morrisey brought the case, along with 17 other states, challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants under the Clean Air Act.

There currently is no regulatory framework in place to regulate power plant emissions. Plans offered by the past two administrations never took effect.

Morrisey said the case addresses a bigger question: Who should have that regulatory power?

“Once again, whatever your position is on the major question of climate change,” he said, “Congress needs to settle it as opposed to unaccountable agencies.”

James Van Nostrand, director of the Center for Energy and Sustainable Development at West Virginia University, said the case won’t change what’s already happening to coal plants.

“It’s called cheap natural gas. And now, it’s called cost-competitive renewable resources,” he said. “Those are major market forces. The EPA’s a distant fourth on the list of the reasons for the demise of the coal industry.”

The court will reach a decision by the end of June.

AG: Nonprofit Should Help Manage Opioid Settlement Money

West Virginia’s attorney general and a coalition of cities and counties are calling for the creation of a nonprofit foundation to distribute money obtained through settlements or judgments in opioid-related litigation against pharmaceutical companies.

Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said all but one of the state’s 55 counties are currently in the midst of litigation against companies over their role in perpetuating the opioid crisis. Lawsuits allege that manufacturers’ conduct led to opioids becoming a common treatment for chronic pain and fueled substance abuse in West Virginia, one of the states that has been hit hardest by opioids.

The city of Huntington and Cabell County brought the three largest U.S. drug distributors — AmerisourceBergen Corp, McKesson Corp and Cardinal Health Inc — to trial last year. Communities are still awaiting a verdict in that case, which was the first lawsuit over the U.S. addiction epidemic to go to trial.

The state is set to go to trial in April against Teva Pharmaceuticals Inc., Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Endo Health Solutions Inc.

“The opioid epidemic is one of the challenges of our time here in West Virginia,” Morrisey said during a Wednesday press conference at the state Capitol. “There’s been a lot of senseless death over many, many years.”

Morrisey said the state’s counties and cities signed on to an agreement calling for the private nonprofit foundation. The foundation will be managed by a board of 11 members: Five would be state appointees and the rest would be local representatives from six different regions of the state. The board members will have expertise in fields like mental health, substance misuse and law enforcement.

An executive director appointed by the attorney general would run day-to-day operations.

As the central organization dedicated to addressing the opioid crisis throughout the state, the foundation would receive 72.5% of each settlement or judgment, 24.5% would be allocated to local governments and 3% would held in escrow by the state.

Many other states already have similar agreements and others have been pushing them. Morrisey said if the counties and the cities of the state don’t reach an agreement on how the money will be allocated, the court gets to decide.

All of the money would be used to address needs related to the opioid crisis.

Huntington Mayor Steve Williams said Wednesday that any money won in litigation will go to new initiatives and program to help fight the opioid epidemic.

“One thing that’s been very, very specific in our minds is that we’re not looking to be reimbursed for what we have expended in the past,” he said.

Williams said there’s a lot of need — need that’s only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It is such a broad umbrella,” he said. “You have grandparents who are having to take care of grandchildren. You have children growing up in the midst of adverse childhood experiences that we need to be able to address,” he said. “What we’re seeing is that we have babies that are being born exposed to substances… it is the entire community that’s being affected.”