PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The states of Washington and California are co-leading a lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s declared “national energy emergency,” warning the declaration poses a risk toward human and environmental health.

The emergency declaration, which was issued on Inauguration Day, allows federal agencies to use emergency procedures to boost oil and gas production.

“We need a reliable, diversified, and affordable supply of energy to drive our Nation’s manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, and defense industries, and to sustain the basics of modern life and military preparedness,” the declaration states. “Caused by the harmful and shortsighted policies of the previous administration, our Nation’s inadequate energy supply and infrastructure causes and makes worse the high energy prices that devastate Americans, particularly those living on low- and fixed-incomes.”

However, in a lawsuit filed May 9, Democratic attorneys general requested a court order to halt implementation of the emergency declaration, explaining the order would allow federal agencies to bypass reviews for energy projects that are required under the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act and the National Preservation Act.

Describing the national energy emergency as “fake,” Washington Attorney General Nick Brown said, “The president’s attempt to bypass important environmental protections is illegal and would cause immense harm to Washingtonians. This won’t lower prices, increase our energy supply, or make our country safer,” adding, “We’re back in court to hold him accountable.”

While Trump declared the national energy emergency under the National Emergencies Act, the attorneys general note that Congress passed the law to stop presidents from declaring emergencies “for frivolous or partisan matters – exactly what the president has done here.”

In response to the emergency declaration, Casey Sixkiller, the director of the Washington Department of Ecology explained, “Environmental regulations exist because we’ve seen what happens when they don’t,” adding, “The federal administration is proposing an end-run that ignores the hard lessons of the past. These protections aren’t red tape — they’re guardrails that protect our air, water, land, and keep our families safe.”

Washington and California are joined by several states in filing the lawsuit, including attorneys general representing Oregon, Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin.

“This order deliberately cuts out clean energy projects and puts our communities in Oregon in the dark about the risks to their health, their homes, and their environment,” said Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield. “We’re talking how we prevent polluted drinking water, protect against toxic spills and lessen the impact of natural disasters like flooding.”

“The only ‘emergency’ is that the president disagrees with policies to address climate change in Oregon and elsewhere. He is illegally using emergency authorities to keep the nation reliant on energy sources like coal, oil, and gas. The order excludes wind, solar, and batteries — among the cheapest and cleanest modern energy sources that exist today. The end goal is clear: eliminate the competition so his oil and gas donors can keep gouging Oregonians and polluting the state,” Rayfield’s office said in a press release.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington against President Trump, U.S. Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll, Chief of Engineers and Commanding General for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Lt. Gen. William H. Graham, and Travis Voyles, vice chair of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

The attorneys general claim the defendants, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation have taken illegal actions to implement the executive order.

Lynne Richmond ACHP’s acting director for the Office of Communications, Education, and Outreach, told KOIN 6 News “On May 9, the ACHP was named in a lawsuit in federal district court, along with the President, the Army, and the Corps of Engineers, regarding the issuance and implementation of E.O 14156 on the national energy emergency. The ACHP is currently working with the Department of Justice on this litigation.”

The DOJ and the Army declined to comment on the ongoing litigation. KOIN 6 News has also reached out to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This story will be updated if we receive a response.

The national emergency declaration comes as energy production in the United States is at an all-time high, according to the attorneys general, noting oil and natural gas companies have no plans to increase output in response to the president’s executive order declaring the emergency.

President Trump is also trying to increase energy exports, which the U.S. Department of Energy says, will raise prices for American consumers, the attorneys general noted.