Twelve states of United States sued President Joe Biden with Republican attorneys general Monday over his first executive order aimed at climate change. -reports USA Today.

It has been alleged that he lacked the constitutional authority to implement new rules about greenhouse gases.

The federal lawsuit, led by Republican Attorney General Eric Schmitt of Missouri, argues Biden violated the separation of powers clause in the Constitution because Congress, not the president, has the power to regulate. 

On his first day in the White House, Biden signed Executive Order 13990, directing federal agencies to calculate the "social cost" of greenhouse gas pollution by estimating "monetized damages" to inform future federal regulations. This includes changes in net agricultural productivity, human health, property damage from increased flood risk, and the value of ecosystem services. 

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But, 12 plaintiff states say assigning such values is a "quintessentially legislative action that falls within Congress’s exclusive authority." They also say the economic ramifications of the order will be disastrous.