(AP) — A law that Michigan's Republican-led Legislature hurriedly passed during a lame-duck session in December authorizing the construction of an oil pipeline tunnel beneath the channel linking lakes Huron and Michigan is unconstitutional, the state's Democratic attorney general deemed in an opinion Thursday.
Shortly after Dana Nessel issued her first legal opinion since taking office in January, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered state agencies to stop any work on the project.
Nessel said the bill violated the state constitution because it went beyond what the bill's title reflected.
The measure authorized a deal between then-GOP Gov. Rick Snyder and Canadian pipeline company Enbridge to drill the tunnel through bedrock under the Straits of Mackinac. It would house a replacement for a more than 4-mile-long (6.4-kilometer-long) segment of Enbridge's Line 5, which carries crude oil and natural gas liquids between Superior, Wisconsin, and Sarnia, Ontario.
Nessel and Whitmer were elected in November after criticizing the pipeline tunnel plan during their campaigns. After both were inaugurated, Whitmer asked Nessel to assess the constitutionality of the bill.
Whitmer said in a statement that she agrees with Nessel's opinion, which carries the force of law unless overruled by a court.
"The Great Lakes are our most precious resource in Michigan, and because of their significance, I've instructed state departments and agencies to halt any actions in furtherance of the law," Whitmer said.
Among other provisions, the law established a panel — the Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority — to oversee construction and eventual operation of the tunnel, which Enbridge estimates would cost $500 million and take up to 10 years to build. Enbridge would pay for it, but Michigan would own it and lease it to the company for 99 years.
Snyder, GOP lawmakers and Enbridge described the complex agreement as a win-win that would keep oil flowing along Line 5 but lead to the decommissioning of the straits-area segment — twin pipes that have traversed the bottomlands since 1953. The company says they're in good condition, while environmentalists, native tribes and other crticics argue they're vulnerable to a spill that could do catastrophic damage to the lakes.
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