Twenty-seven states and a coalition of agriculture and industry have filed lawsuits against the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers regarding the final rule on Waters of the U.S.
The states say the final rule gives the agencies “virtually limitless power” over non-navigable, intrastate waters and the rule violates the Clean Water Act, the Commerce Clause and state sovereignty under the Constitution. A group of 14 agricultural and industry organizations also filed a case claiming the new WOTUS rule grants the EPA and the Army Corps broad control over land use beyond what Congress authorized in the CWA, and the vagueness and over-breadth of the rule violates the U.S. Constitution.
The group includes the National Pork Producers Council, American Farm Bureau Federation, American Petroleum Institute, American Road and Transportation Builders, Leading Builders of America, National Alliance of Forest Owners, National Association of Home Builders, National Association of Manufacturers, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Mining Association and Public Lands Council.
