Agricultural News
GOP Committee Leaders Call Out Biden Administration for Overstepping Regulatory Authority on WOTUS
Tue, 20 Sep 2022 13:53:43 CDT
Today, Rep. Glenn "GT" Thompson, Republican Leader of the House Committee on Agriculture, joined several of his colleagues in sending a letter to Michael Regan, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Michael Connor, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, raising concerns about regulatory actions taken by the EPA and the United States Army Corps of Engineers which would expand the breadth of their regulatory authority under the Clean Water Act to regulate “waters of the United States” (WOTUS).
In the letter, the Members write, "One of the most serious instances where a presidential administration has sought to usurp the authority granted to it by Congress is in the attempts to revise the definition of WOTUS under the Clean Water Act. For decades, rural communities, farmers, businesses, and industries who rely on clean water have dealt with legal and regulatory uncertainty, compounded with confusing and overreaching Federal regulations over what is considered a WOTUS and subject to Federal regulations and permitting. West Virginia v. EPA suggests that there is 'reason to hesitate' with regard to this claim of authority given the two criteria outlined by Chief Justice Roberts: the history and breadth of the authority asserted and the economic and political significance of that assertion."
The Members continue, "As Ranking Members of several House Committees, including those overseeing your Agencies, we intend to exercise our robust investigative and legislative authority to not only forcefully reassert our Article I responsibilities, but to ensure the Biden Administration does not continue to exceed Congressional authorizations."
To read the full letter, click here.
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