Today, U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, issued the following statement after the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it is taking steps to revise the Biden administration’s 2023 “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule.
“In 2023, the Biden administration attempted to dramatically expand federal regulatory authority over WOTUS. I am pleased to see that President Trump's EPA is taking action to rescind this overreach. By narrowing the federal government’s authority to regulate WOTUS under the Clean Water Act, the EPA will align this regulation with the rulings of the Supreme Court. It is past time to give private citizens and the states clarity and certainty about the federal government's authority to regulate WOTUS,” said Senator Fischer.
Background:
Since 2015, Senator Fischer has been a leader in efforts to stop WOTUS regulatory overreach. A list of her actions on this issue is shown below:
- Cosponsored and voted for a Congressional Review Act to overturn the Biden WOTUS rule.
- Cosigned an amicus brief to the Supreme Court to limit the scope of WOTUS.
- Cosponsored legislation to codify the Navigable Water Protection Rule into law.
- Signed a letter to EPA Administrator Regan and the Army Corps of Engineers Acting Assistant Secretary expressing opposition to altering the Navigable Water Protection Rule.
- Joined 25 of her Senate colleagues in a resolution calling for the Senate not to eliminate the Navigable Waters Protection Rule.
- Chaired a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee field hearing in Lincoln, Nebraska, regarding the rule.
- Introduced the Federal Water Quality Protection Act, which would have required the Obama administration to consult states and stakeholders before imposing federal regulations on state-owned water resources.
- Introduced the Defending Rivers from Overreaching Policies (DROP) Act. This bill targeted the flawed science used by the EPA to expand the definition of water.
