Scott Votes to Prevent EPA From Imposing Destructive New Regulations on South Carolina Waters

Measures Direct EPA to Focus on Navigable Waters and Wetlands, Not Puddles and Ditches

Washington – November 4, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — Working to stop the regulatory nightmares caused by President Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) today voted for both the Federal Water Quality Protection Act (S. 1140) and a joint Resolution of Disapproval to prevent the expanded “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule (S.J. Res. 22).

“Today, the U.S. Senate took an important step to protect farmers, ranchers, manufacturers, homeowners and small businesses in South Carolina and across the country from the Obama administration’s reckless attempt to expand their powers into private ponds, creeks, ditches and numerous state and local waters,” said Senator Scott. “The EPA’s actions, if not stopped, will cause significant economic harm in every corner of the country. That’s why thirty-one states, including South Carolina, have filed lawsuits against the WOTUS rule and why Congress immediately began to take action to stop it. South Carolina families simply cannot afford the confusion, uncertainty and unnecessary red tape caused by an out of control EPA. I will continue to oppose the Obama administration’s land and water grabs, because South Carolinians should not have to pick between outrageous compliance costs and new fines or their land and their livelihoods.”

This summer, the EPA issued a final WOTUS rule that expanded the scope of federal authority over land and water at the expense of states. EPA’s rule would regulate nearly all water, including man-made water management systems, water that infiltrates into the ground or moves overland, and any other water that the EPA decides has a “significant nexus” to downstream water based on use by animals, insects, and birds, and on water storage considerations. Following its announcement, nearly 90 plaintiffs including 31 states, including South Carolina, and other groups filed lawsuits.

S. 1140 directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers to issue a revised “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule that protects traditional navigable water and wetlands from water pollution, while also protecting farmers, ranchers and private landowners. S.J. Res. 22 would nullify this ill-conceived rule, sending a message to the EPA that they failed to address the concerns raised by farmers, ranchers, manufacturers and small businesses in South Carolina and across the country. It requires a simple majority to pass