Legislation Would Stop EPA’s Regulation of New Ditches, Ponds and Puddles
WASHINGTON, D.C. – November 5, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) today voted to advance a Resolution of Disapproval to effectively reject the Obama administration’s expansion of federal jurisdiction over isolated non-navigable waters and wetlands under the Clean Water Act.
Cochran’s favorable vote on S.J.Res.22 is part of an ongoing effort to block or overturn the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule, which would bring new waters, including creeks and ponds on private land, under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act and subject them to EPA permitting requirements.
“We need to be good stewards of our environmental resources, but the Waters of the United States regulation is a burden,” Cochran said. “Farmers, ranchers and outdoorsmen across the country can be justifiably concerned with the negative effects of this ruling, which would affect property owners throughout Mississippi.”
The Senate voted 53 to 44 in favor of S.J.Res.22, a joint congressional Resolution of Disapproval to ensure that WOTUS would have no force or effect. Cochran is among the 49 cosponsors of the measure, which was authored by Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa). The resolution will now be referred to the House of Representatives for approval.
