Today President Donald Trump issued an executive action ordering the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers to reconsider their controversial Waters of the United States Rule.
The WOTUS rule, which was issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers under the Obama Administration, was challenged in courts by more than 30 states, environmental organizations, and numerous industry groups including the National Corn Growers Association, American Farm Bureau Federation, and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. . In October 2015, a federal appeals court issued a stay preventing the rule’s implementation.
The National Corn Growers Association said, “We appreciate the Trump Administration’s commitment to reducing regulatory burdens for America’s farmers and ranchers,” said NCGA President Wesley Spurlock. “We fully support the repeal of the WOTUS rule. Farmers and ranchers care deeply about clean water, but this rule had significant flaws. It was arbitrarily written, legally indefensible, and extremely difficult to implement.”
Craig Uden, president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) today said, “This extremely flawed rule would force ranchers and feedlot operators to get permits or risk excessive federal penalties despite being miles away from any navigable water. It would be one of the largest federal land grabs and private-property infringements in American history, and the President should be applauded for making EPA and the Corps reconsider this debacle. Ultimately, this rule should be taken out behind the barn and put out of its misery.”
U.S. Senator Steve Daines (R) Montana, released a statement on the overreaching WOTUS rule seeks to regulate virtually every ditch and pond that may be occasionally wet across the United States and would have a significant negative impact on farmers, ranchers, and landowners across the country.
Northern Ag Network, NCGA, NCBA, U.S. Senator Steve Daines
