The House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee’s fiscal year 2016 appropriations bill prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency from implementing its revised Clean Water Act rule until the fall of 2016 at the earliest.
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has passed the “Regulatory Integrity Protection Act of 2015” (H.R. 1732), requiring the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to withdraw their proposed “Waters of the U.S.” rule. The legislation also calls on the EPA and the Corps to develop a new rule that takes into consideration the public comments received and to reach consensus with state and local governments on defining WOTUS.
The EPA earlier this month sent its proposed rule which would redefine what streams, ponds, ditches and other areas that would be regulated to the Office of Management and Budget for final review.
