The House bill, the “WOTUS Regulatory Overreach Protection Act,” sponsored by Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Fla., would prohibit EPA and the Corps of Engineers from “developing, finalizing, adopting, implementing, applying, administering, or enforcing” the WOTUS rule and any associated guidance attempting to clarify the scope of the clean water law. The legislation also would block a companion interpretive rule, which enumerates agricultural practices that would be exempt from the WOTUS rule.
“The expanded coverage resulting from the proposed rule, which likely would negate the agricultural exemptions, could force most farmers to apply for Clean Water Act discharge permits,” said NPPC’s Hill, “and permits likely would be needed for a host of traditional farming practices such as application of pesticides and fertilizer. This rule would hand activist groups a tool they could use to file lawsuits to force farmers to obtain permits merely for planting seeds.
“NPPC wants EPA to rescind its agricultural exemptions rule immediately and to either withdraw the WOTUS rule or work with agriculture to make changes in the proposal that reflect real on-farm conditions, then reopen the rule for public comment,” Hill said.
The House legislation would require EPA and the Corps of Engineers to write with state and local officials a proposed rule based on consensus recommendations, which would be subject to public review.
In a letter sent yesterday to members of the House, NPPC, 25 state pork associations and dozens of other agricultural groups urged lawmakers to vote in favor of the Southerland bill. [Click here to read the letter.] NPPC also signed on to a similar letter to House lawmakers that included national agricultural organizations and business associations.
Source: NPPC