By Elyse Apel
The Center Square

Colorado has sued the Trump administration over its decision to move the U.S. Space Command Headquarters out of the state.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser argued this move from Colorado Springs to Huntsville, Alabama is “unconstitutional and unlawful.”

“The president could not have been clearer about his motivations for moving Space Command. He said Colorado’s mail-in voting system was a ‘big factor’ in his decision making,” Weiser said. “The Constitution does not permit the executive branch to punish or retaliate against states for lawfully exercising powers reserved for them, such as the power to regulate elections.”

President Donald Trump first announced the move in early September, just months after it reached full operational capacity at Peterson Space Force Base in December.

Currently Colorado has the largest private aerospace industry per capita in the country. Since 2020, aerospace employment has grown in the state by 24% and the state has secured $31 billion in federal contracts. In just 2024, Colorado added over 3,500 new aerospace and defense jobs.

“Keeping Space Command in Colorado honors the significant investments already made by businesses in the Pikes Peak region and protects thousands of families from unnecessary disruptions in their lives,” said Rep. Jenny Willford, chair of the Colorado House State, Civic, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee. “Relocation will waste critical taxpayer resources and undermine the stability of our servicemembers and their families, and the vital mission to protect our national security.”

Weiser is seeking a court order prohibiting the Trump administration from following through on moving the SPACECOM’s permanent headquarters, which former President Joe Biden declared should be in Colorado in 2023. It also is asking the courts to declare that Trump’s alleged retaliation against Colorado is unconstitutional.

“If we don’t take a stand now against this unconstitutional and unlawful decision, Colorado and other states that use mail-in voting will face further pressure or punishment unless they give up their constitutional authority,” Weiser said.

When Trump made the announcement, he did not specify why he made that decision, besides stating that Alabama “fought harder for it than anybody else.”

Huntsville is currently home to the Redstone Army Airfield and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. The Space and Missile Defense Command of the Army is also located there.

Alabama lawmakers have applauded the decision to move the headquarters there, saying it was Biden who first injected politics into the decision by choosing Colorado.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said he plans to fight Weiser’s lawsuit.

“This lawsuit is nothing more than a partisan attempt to overturn a lawful, evidence-based decision repeatedly validated by military experts, independent reviews, and congressional oversight,” Marshall said in a statement on Wednesday, the same day Colorado announced its lawsuit. “Alabama will vigorously defend this decision in court and is confident the law and facts are squarely on our side. If Colorado insists on fighting a political battle in federal court, Alabama will meet them there, and win.”