GOP senators introduce bill to block 'Waters of the U.S.' rule
WASHINGTON, June 19, 2014 – Sen. Pat Roberts of
Kansas and 29 other Republican senators today introduced legislation
meant to prevent the EPA from implementing its proposed “Waters of the U.S.” rule.
The senators say the rule would allow EPA to “take
over all private and state waters in the United States” by expanding federal
authority under the Clean Water Act (CWA).
“After already calling on the EPA and Army Corps
(of Engineers) to withdraw the proposed rule, I want to make sure that the
expansion of regulatory jurisdiction over ‘Waters of the United States’ is shelved
for good,” Roberts said in a statement. “This straightforward legislation
prohibits the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and the
Secretary of the Army from finalizing the rule or trying a similar regulation
in the future.”
The American
Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) officially endorsed the legislation, the
“Protecting Water and Property Rights Act of 2014,” in its own statement
addressed to Roberts.
“As a constitutional matter, the agencies are
asserting an authority not granted them by Congress,” AFBF said of EPA’s
proposed rule. “As a practical matter, it will mean increased enforcement
against farmers, greater expenses for permitting, potential delays in managing
their operations, and the unquestioned exposure of legal liability attendant
with lawsuits from activists.”
The legislation introduced by the Republican
senators “seeks to prevent such an outcome and deserves strong, bipartisan
support,” AFBF concluded.
#30
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