LABRADOR PRAISES TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDER ON WATERS OF THE UNITED STATES

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Raúl Labrador, R-Idaho, issued the following statement today after President Trump signed a new executive order instructing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to formally begin a process to review the Obama Administration rule governing “navigable waters,” also known as “ Waters of the United States.”

“Rolling back the Obama Administration’s ‘ Waters of the United States ‘ rule is a huge win for rural Idaho.  I have fought this stunning federal over-reach since the day it was proposed and have been actively working on a legislative remedy with my colleagues.  This is exactly what I hoped a Trump Administration would do for my constituents in Idaho – roll back excessive regulations that are destroying our rural communities.”

Proposed in April 2014, the rule vastly expands the reach of federal regulation under the Clean Water Act. It redefines the four-decade-old “ navigable waters ” regulatory standard as the “ waters of the United States.” Non-navigable waters are now regulated by the states, who have been partners with the federal government under the Clean Water Act. The rule as written defined “ navigable waters ” so broadly that even small puddles on an Idaho farm could be put under federal control.

The Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, based in Cincinnati, ordered the regulatory scheme to be halted in 2015 pending review of numerous lawsuits, including one from Idaho.  The new Trump Administration order specifically asks agencies to consider what the Supreme Court wrote in the 2006 case Rapanos v. United States, saying the Clean Water Act should only cover navigable waters and waterways that are linked continuously.