SEPTEMBER 5, 2023:
The American Farm Bureau Federation says the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s recent rewrite of the Waters of the U.S. Rule failed to bring fairness to farmers and ranchers.
AFBF Senior Government Affairs Director Courtney Briggs says Farm Bureau is disappointed in the direction taken by the EPA.
“This is a real missed opportunity to write a WOTUS rule that is fair to the regulated community and that is truly durable. And the agencies have addressed the headline grabbing aspects of the Supreme Court decision, like getting rid of the problematic significant nexus test, but they are trying to exploit aspects of the rule in order to expand their jurisdictional reach.”
For farmers and ranchers, Briggs says the rule fails to bring clarity and certainty.
“So, while we’ve made a lot of progress with the Sackett decision, the agencies are still trying to be vague and amorphous with their policies, which equates to continued confusion and lack of certainty for landowners. So, we have long called for a durable rule, but this rulemaking completely misses the mark.”
Briggs says it’s important that farmers and ranchers know the specifics of WOTUS to their state.
“So, the challenge now is to make sure our members understand the rules in the specific states that they live in, because there’s still litigation that has enjoined the 2023 WOTUS rule in 27 states. So, that is really our focus right now, is to make sure that our members are well equipped to adapt to this new rulemaking.”
AUGUST 30, 2023:
The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers Tuesday (Aug. 29, 2023) announced a final rule amending the 2023 definition of “waters of the United States.” The final rule intends to conform with the recent Supreme Court decision in Sackett v. EPA. With this action, the Army Corps of Engineers will resume issuing all jurisdictional determinations. The rule will take effect immediately.
In response, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Chief Counsel Mary-Thomas Hart says, “The entire cattle industry breathed a sigh of relief when the Supreme Court curtailed the EPA’s overreach under the Clean Water Act. Today’s revised WOTUS definition is an important step toward bringing the EPA more in line with the Supreme Court’s ruling. NCBA looks forward to working with the agency to protect farmers and ranchers from burdensome regulations and provide them with lasting certainty on WOTUS. “NCBA was proud to lead the fight against burdensome WOTUS rules from Congress to the courts. We will continue analyzing this latest development to ensure that cattle producers are protected.”
American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall says the EPA chose to continue government overreach and revise only a small slice of the rule that the Supreme Court rejected. Duvall adds, “We’re pleased the vague and confusing ‘significant nexus’ test has been eliminated as the Supreme Court dictated. But EPA has ignored other clear concerns raised by the Justices, 26 states, and farmers across the country about the rule’s failure to respect private property rights and the Clean Water Act.”
American Soybean Association President Daryl Cates, a soybean farmer in Illinois, says “When EPA and the Army Corps announced they planned to tweak the flawed WOTUS regulations on the heels of the Sackett decision, we were concerned this could be the outcome. These revisions are unfortunately window dressings and leave in place much of the rule’s confusing and harmful foundations. It is even more unsettling that EPA and the Corps plan to finalize this rule without public comment. This revision is a missed opportunity to address very real and impactful farmer concerns.”
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