Congressman Scott DesJarlais, M.D. released the following statement, after the Trump Administration’s announcement Tuesday it would withdraw the “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule. The Environmental Protection Agency rule, which the prior administration issued to expand federal authority over local waterways, potentially including puddles and drainage ditches, threatened private property rights, state law, and Tennessee’s agriculture industry:
“The Obama Administration set the record for new pages of rules and regulations, the Waters of the U.S. rule one of the worst examples. It was a federal land grab, pure and simple, threatening citizens’ property rights and state authority, as well as the Constitution’s separation of powers. The rule would have cost jobs and economic growth, especially in the agriculture sector. Tennessee has ample expertise to regulate natural resources within its borders and to promote environmental health.”
Earlier this year, President Donald Trump ordered the EPA and Army Corp of Engineers, responsible for implementing it, to review the rule. In Congress, Rep. DesJarlais, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, has voted to cancel it. A federal appeals court rejected the rule’s expanded definition of “navigable waterways” to include temporary bodies of water and even adjacent land.