{"id":2387915,"date":"2025-01-08T14:18:03","date_gmt":"2025-01-08T19:18:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/interior-officials-take-over-id-appeals-in-11th-hour-power-grab\/"},"modified":"2025-01-08T14:20:17","modified_gmt":"2025-01-08T19:20:17","slug":"interior-officials-take-over-id-appeals-in-11th-hour-power-grab","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/interior-officials-take-over-id-appeals-in-11th-hour-power-grab\/","title":{"rendered":"Interior Officials Take Over ID Appeals In 11th-Hour Power Grab"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Finterior-officials-take-over-id-appeals-in-11th-hour-power-grab%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2387915&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses a controversial memo sent by\u200d Laura\u200d Daniel-Davis, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ken-cuccinelli-fence-being-built-around-u-s-capitol\/\" title=\"Ken Cuccinelli: Fence being built around U.S. Capitol\">acting deputy secretary<\/a> of the Interior Department, wich claims unilateral authority\u200c over numerous pending grazing case appeals in Idaho. in her memo, Davis requests access to\u200b case files from the Office of Hearings and Appeals, asserting jurisdiction \u200bover 50 administrative appeals concerning livestock \u2062grazing allotments \u200dthat have \u2062been under consideration for over a decade. Former \u200dAlaska Attorney \u2062General gregg Renkes criticized \u2062the memo as &#8220;unprecedented,&#8221; emphasizing that such cases \u200dare typically handled by an independent board that allows public appeals. He expressed concerns about the implications of bypassing this board, suggesting it\u2064 undermines the \u200bimpartiality of the review process.\u200b Davis, who has a history of\u2064 ethical concerns while in office,\u200b has not clarified how the appeals will be \u2063decided after her assertive takeover. The\u200c <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/microsoft-eliminates-dei-team-leader-says-policies-are-no-longer-essential-for-business-20\/\" title=\"Microsoft eliminates DEI team, leader says policies are no longer essential for business\">article raises \u2062questions<\/a> about \u200dthe clarity and fairness of the decision-making process \u200bunder her jurisdiction.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/flickr.com\/photos\/iip-photo-archive\/52289173425\/in\/photolist-2nEBFwR-BVFvZp-TdCW7y-BTnGPQ-2fhcEDS-2fhcCDQ-2nnqjwU-2nnnSpR-2nnhwHv-MZ1epD-2nnhx3J-2nnp1Hd-2nnhxG4-TdCYju-csNkBJ-2kLfkFg-2nGknNn-2jNbhnU-2fhcC5o-2kLfi3v-2kLfMVm-B6ydYz-2jNeV9M-2kLfiNJ-2fhcAMU\">GPA Photo Archive \/ Flickr <\/a> \/ <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/08\/senior-interior-officials-unilaterally-take-over-idaho-land-appeals-cases-in-11th-hour-power-grab\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Senior%20Interior%20Officials%20Unilaterally%20Take%20Over%20Idaho%20Land%20Appeals%20Cases%20In%2011th-Hour%20Power%20Grab&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/08\/senior-interior-officials-unilaterally-take-over-idaho-land-appeals-cases-in-11th-hour-power-grab\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Senior%20Interior%20Officials%20Unilaterally%20Take%20Over%20Idaho%20Land%20Appeals%20Cases%20In%2011th-Hour%20Power%20Grab&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/08\/senior-interior-officials-unilaterally-take-over-idaho-land-appeals-cases-in-11th-hour-power-grab\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/08\/senior-interior-officials-unilaterally-take-over-idaho-land-appeals-cases-in-11th-hour-power-grab\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Senior%20Interior%20Officials%20Unilaterally%20Take%20Over%20Idaho%20Land%20Appeals%20Cases%20In%2011th-Hour%20Power%20Grab&amp;body=Former%20Alaska%20Attorney%20General%20Greg%20Renkes,%20who%20previously%20served%20on%20an%20appeals%20board,%20called%20the%20move%20'unprecedented.'%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/08\/senior-interior-officials-unilaterally-take-over-idaho-land-appeals-cases-in-11th-hour-power-grab\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>President Joe Biden&rsquo;s acting deputy secretary of the Interior Department, Laura Daniel-Davis, sent a memo to the agency&rsquo;s Office of Hearings and Appeals this week appearing to assume sole authority over dozens of pending grazing cases in Idaho.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I am assuming jurisdiction of the [attached] cases,&rdquo; Davis wrote in the memo, citing federal code. &ldquo;Please immediately provide my office access to the relevant filings and associated materials.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-848611357\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Davis sent the memo addressed to the director of the Office of Hearings and Appeals on Monday &mdash; the same day President-elect Donald Trump&rsquo;s November election was certified and with just two weeks left in the incumbent administration. The document, however, says nothing about who will decide the cases pulled from the agency appeals boards, or why they were pulled by the acting deputy Interior secretary.<\/p>\n<p>Former Alaska Attorney General Gregg Renkes, who served as an administrative judge on the Interior Board of Land Appeals between January and November 2021 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/gregg-renkes-89284a205\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according<\/a> to LinkedIn, called the move &ldquo;unprecedented&rdquo; in an interview with The Federalist.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never seen a case pulled back,&rdquo; Renkes said, and characterized the memo as &ldquo;odd.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Normally, as Renkes explained, when the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) makes a decision, members of the public can appeal to the Office of Hearings and Appeals. If an appellant fails there, they have the right to plea their case before the Interior Board of Land Appeals. The process takes time, and members of the public can take their case to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-announces-new-legal-team-for-impeachment-defense-after-previous-team-collapsed\/\" title=\"Trump Announces New Legal Team For Impeachment Defense After Previous Team Collapsed\">federal district court<\/a> if the agency refuses to reverse the BLM&rsquo;s initial decision.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Acting Deputy Secretary Laura Daniel-Davis has assumed jurisdiction of 50 administrative appeals of final decisions on 28 livestock grazing allotments in Idaho,&rdquo; Interior Spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz told The Federalist. &ldquo;These appeals have been pending with the Office of Hearing and Appeals for more than 10 years. The Department will now determine next steps for the appeals process.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Interior Board of Land Appeals is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.doi.gov\/oha\/about-interior-board-land-appeals\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">supposed<\/a> to operate as an independent arbiter of agency review but exercises authority from the secretary. Renkes told The Federalist that while the board has faced criticism as a &ldquo;rubber stamp of the agency,&rdquo; the panel still offers citizens the chance to present evidence.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know why you would upset that process,&rdquo; Renkes said. The fact the acting secretary authored Monday&rsquo;s memo circumventing the board, and not the principal cabinet secretary who is Senate confirmed, gives the &ldquo;appearance of something other than an impartial review,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Davis, who has been acting deputy secretary since October 2023, had previously been accused of crossing ethical lines to set agency policy as <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">principal deputy assistant secretary<\/a> for land and minerals management. In September 2022, Davis became the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/09\/19\/nonprofit-activist-turned-interior-official-is-using-federal-power-to-shut-down-arctic-drilling-ethics-watchdog-alleges\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">subject <\/a>of a complaint from the transparency nonprofit Protect the Public&rsquo;s Trust (PPT) over improper influence related to pulling oil and gas leases in the Arctic, as The Federalist previously reported. The complaint centered on Davis&rsquo; tenure as chief of policy at the National Wildlife Federation, which had sued the federal government over the leases under President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Within six months at Interior, Ms. Daniel-Davis had exercised her official authority to achieve practically all of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nonprofit-activist-turned-interior-official-is-using-federal-power-to-shut-down-arctic-drilling-ethics-watchdog-alleges-2\/\" title=\"Nonprofit Activist-Turned-Interior Official Is Using Federal Power To Shut Down Arctic Drilling, Ethics Watchdog Alleges\">legal remedies sought<\/a> by her former employer in court,&rdquo; PPT <a href=\"https:\/\/protectpublicstrust.org\/press-releases\/watchdog-files-ig-complaint-over-possible-ethics-violation-involving-anwr-leasing-plan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> at the time. &ldquo;Even worse, the legal arguments she relied on to do so were strikingly similar to those developed for and included in her former employer&rsquo;s legal filings.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Biden-Harris administration came into office promising to restore traditional norms,&rdquo; PPT Director Michael Chamberlain told The Federalist. &ldquo;But their behavior over the last four years has shown them to be focused on advancing anything but.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The agency&rsquo;s latest move to circumvent appeals boards, Chamberlain added, &ldquo;could put the political leadership of the Department of the Interior in the position to be able to reward their ideological allies, at the expense of everyday Americans.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Tristan Justice is a national correspondent for The Federalist and the co-author of &#8220;Fat and Unhappy: How &#8216;Body Positivity&#8217; Is Killing Us (and How to Save Yourself).&#8221; He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at Tristan@thefederalist.com. Sign up for Tristan&#8217;s email newsletter <a href=\"https:\/\/socialjusticeredux.substack.com\/about\">here<\/a>. Buy &#8220;Fat and Unhappy&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/sz7EDAJI1c\">here<\/a>.<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Tristan Justice<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JusticeTristan\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@JusticeTristan<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/tristanjustice\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/department-of-the-interior\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Department of the Interior<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/interior-department\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Interior Department<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/ppt\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">PPT<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/protect-the-publics-trust\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Protect the Public&#8217;s Trust<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Acting Deputy Secretary Laura Daniel-Davis sent a memo to the Office of Hearings and Appeals<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":494,"featured_media":2387916,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Idaho-Grazing-e1736358295990.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[48157,48156,44923],"class_list":["post-2387915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-id-appeals","tag-interior-officials","tag-power-grab"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Idaho-Grazing-e1736358295990.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2387915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/494"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2387915"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2387915\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2387919,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2387915\/revisions\/2387919"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2387916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2387915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2387915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2387915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}