Newhouse Blasts District Court Ruling on Navigable Waters Protection Rule"Allowing states and local landowners to oversee protections for local waters does not inherently equate to environmental degradation, and any such claim is ridiculous and lacking in scientific evidence."
Washington,
August 31, 2021
|
Elizabeth Daniels
(202-280-8720)
Tags:
Water
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressional Western Caucus Chairman Dan Newhouse (WA-04) released the following statement in response to a federal district court ruling in Arizona striking down the Navigable Waters Protection Rule, creating further uncertainty for rural communities across the United States:
“It is disappointing to see our courts take cues from the Biden Administration’s empty talking points spreading fear and misinformation about the Navigable Waters Protection Rule," said Chairman Newhouse. "Rural America and local communities have a vested interest in clean water. Allowing states and local landowners to oversee protections for local waters does not inherently equate to environmental degradation, and any such claim is ridiculous and lacking in scientific evidence. This decision greatly limits their ability to support existing, sustainable efforts to protect the nation’s waterways. It is no surprise that the same misguided environmental lobbyists bring lawsuit after lawsuit to further line their coffers; but it is completely impermissible that the Biden Administration simultaneously refuses to prioritize regulatory certainty — together, these efforts seek to cripple our economies, environment, and rural way of life."
Background: Chairman Newhouse, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-02), and Rep. Bill Johnson (OH-06) recently visited Iowa for a Congressional Western Caucus Navigable Waters Field Tour and Roundtable where they learned firsthand the importance of maintaining the Navigable Waters Protection Rule (NWPR) to provide certainty for rural communities, businesses, and landowners who are working to promote clean water throughout the United States. On April 14, 2021, Rep. Miller-Meeks introduced legislation expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that clean water is a national priority and that the NWPR should be maintained. The legislation has gained the support of 125 Members of Congress. Chairman Newhouse and Rep. Miller-Meeks penned this op-ed for the Des Moines Register: Rural America is dedicated to clean water. When the Biden Administration announced their intention to revise and remand the NWPR, Chairman Newhouse, Rep. Miller-Meeks, Senator Steve Daines (MT), and Senator Joni Ernst (IA) led Western Caucus Members in a bicameral letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan and Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Jaime Pinkham to express their serious concerns and demand answers about the Administration’s plans to reopen the definition of “waters of the United States.” They have yet to receive a response. Click here to read the letter and learn more. |
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