House Passes Bill to Halt Administration’s Problematic Water Rule

Earlier this week, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5078, the Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act, by a vote of 262-152. This bill would halt the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (Corps) proposed rulemaking that redefines “waters of the U.S.” under the Clean Water Act (CWA).  It would prevent the agencies from finalizing the rule and require that they consult with state and local governments to form recommendations for a consensus regulatory proposal. The bipartisan bill managed to pull nearly three dozen Democrats into the “yes” vote column from districts in every region of the country. This strong showing sends a helpful message to regulators that the proposal has serious flaws and people from many industries in all parts of the country have serious concerns. The bill now moves to the Senate, where Sen. Roberts (R-Kansas) has already called on Majority Leader Reid (D-Nev.) to hold a vote on the House bill. However, the Senate is unlikely to do so, as Reid is reluctant to force Democrats to vote on an unpopular administration regulation just before the election. Additionally, the bill has drawn a veto threat from the president, meaning it will not become law even if passed by the Senate. AGC will continue to educate members of Congress on this issue and will be submitting comments on the rulemaking (both by itself and as part of the Waters Advocacy Coalition) by the Oct. 20 deadline. If you would like to submit your own comments on the rule, visit AGC’s Regulatory Action Center. For more information, please contact Scott Berry at (703) 837-5321 or berrys@agc.org.