South Dakota governor sues feds for denying Mt. Rushmore fireworks permit

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has sued the U.S. Department of Interior for denying the state’s application to shoot fireworks over Mount Rushmore on Independence Day.

The Republican governor successfully pushed last year for a return of fireworks after a decade-long hiatus.

The state’s application to hold fireworks this year was denied by the National Park Service, which cited safety concerns and objections from local Native American tribes.

Noem’s lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for South Dakota, argues that the decision to deny the permit application was “arbitrary and capricious” and violated the powers granted to the agency in the U.S. Constitution.