WASHINGTON
– Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) joined Sens. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) and Joni Ernst
(R-Iowa) in introducing the Define WOTUS
Act, which will codify a congressionally-mandated definition of what
constitutes “waters of the United States” (WOTUS). The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) are granted regulatory
authority over WOTUS, yet the term has not been clearly defined in statute. As
a result, multiple administrations have redefined and expanded the definition
of WOTUS, causing confusion for landowners.
The
Define WOTUS Act would make substantial improvements over various
administrative attempts to redefine the term by clearly outlining what is, and
is not, a federally regulated waterway.
“Iowa
farmers, landowners and developers care about the quality and health of their
land, but multiple rules changes over the past several years have led to
uncertainty and confusion. It’s time to put a stop to federal bureaucrats’
heavy-handed approach and create a clear, commonsense definition of WOTUS,” Grassley
said.
“Regulations
for what falls under ‘Waters of the U.S.’ have ping-ponged back and forth for
years,” Braun said. “Farmers and families need a reasonable,
practical definition for WOTUS, and that’s why I’m introducing the Define WOTUS Act with my colleagues
today."
“Vague
and expanded regulations allow the Biden administration to tell Iowans what
they can and can’t do on their own land. As over 46,000 Iowa small business
owners brace for the impact of Biden’s WOTUS rule, I’m fighting to clarify what
is and, most importantly, what is not a water of the U.S.,” Ernst said.
The
bill differs from EPA’s regulations under the Biden, Trump and Obama administrations
in several important ways:
- Wetlands: Unlike
previous definitions, the bill restricts federal authority to wetlands
that “abut.”
- Ephemeral
Waters: The bill restricts WOTUS to
streams that flow at least 185 days a year—a common recommendation from
agriculture stakeholders.
- Exclusions: The
bill includes more exclusions than previous rule—including an exclusion
for snowpack melt requested by agriculture stakeholders as well as a new
exclusion for drain tiling as a subsurface drainage system.
- Beyond
Visual Inspection: The bill also restricts waters
that require more than a visual inspection to determine their federal
status as not WOTUS. This is an important mechanism requested by many
stakeholders to ensure that the definition is as predictable and uniformly
implemented as possible.
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