LANSING (WKZO) -- The state of Michigan is joining in a lawsuit against the Obama administration.

State Attorney General Bill Schuette is calling the federal mandate that religious employers provide insurance plans that cover contraception and abortion "unconstitutional."  He has filed an amicus brief supporting the lawsuit filed by Michigan-based Weingartz Supply Company and Legatus, which is an organization of Catholic business owners.

Schuette says the mandate forces private sector companies to "violate their conscience."