Washington, D.C. – Earlier this morning, the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced their completion of the final “Waters of the US” rule, which regulates what rivers, streams, and wetlands are subject to federal oversight. Farmers, builders, and electric utilities, claiming that the language in the rule is too vague, have in the past opposed proposed versions of the rule.
Upon the announcement, Congressman Rick Crawford issued the following statement.
“Despite an overwhelming number of public comments requesting a significant modification or complete revocation of this rule, the administration has decided to ignore both the opinion of Congress and the American people by pushing forward with this large expansion of federal authority for small and seasonal bodies of water already regulated at the state level. The ambiguous wording of Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule could subject landowners, farmers, and ranchers to jurisdictional challenges and unprecedented levels of compliance costs. I strongly urge a thorough overhaul of the WOTUS rule that takes into consideration the hundreds of thousands of negative comments filed against it. The bipartisan House-passed Regulatory Integrity Protection Act (H.R. 1732) would send the rule back to the drawing board, and I hope the Senate moves quickly to pass this legislation.”