The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) supports the Republican backed letter requesting that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) halt its 'waters of the United States' (WOTUS) rulemaking while the Supreme Court considers a case brought by the Idaho couple, Chantell and Mike Sackett on the Clean Water Act (CWA).

The couple's case focuses on the legality of the 'significant nexus' standard used by federal regulators to assert federal jurisdiction over any non-navigable, isolated, wetlands and intermittent and ephemeral streams and ditches could have major implications for the CWA's permitting and enforcement programs.

 

The letter states that "proceeding with the rulemaking at this time, despite the pending litigation and potential influential verdict, will only deepen uncertainty within the regulated community."

Much like NAHB, GOP lawmakers are also very critical of the WOTUS rule as currently proposed. Lawmakers note that "severe financial penalties stakeholders could face for conducting standard agricultural or other land development practices under the proposed rule, family farmers and ranchers are understandably alarmed."

The EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced that as of September 3, the agencies have halted implementation of the Navigable Water Protection Rule (NWPR) and are interpreting WOTUS consistent with the pre-2015 regulatory regime until further notice. The unilateral decision by the agencies, without public input means that landowners must immediately follow the federal definition of WOTUS that existed prior to both the Trump and Obama WOTUS rules.

https://nahbnow.com/2022/02/nahb-supports-gop-efforts-to-halt-wotus-rulemaking-pending-supreme-court-decision/