A judge has ruled that allegations of political interference in the federal handling of a home development proposal in southern Arizona warrant the public release of several confidential records.
The Arizona Daily Star reported that retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service official Steve Spangle claims that politically motivated interference from Washington, D.C. leaders overrode a science-based decision about the 28,000-home development in Benson.
U.S. District Judge Raner Collins of Tucson ruled Tuesday that the allegations call into question the entire agency’s decision-making on the development. His ruling gives federal officials 30 days to release the documents. The Interior Department is denying the allegations.
