Washington, D.C. – Today, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Rick Larsen (D-WA) and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment Grace F. Napolitano (D-CA) released the following statements after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced an updated rule regarding Clean Water Act protections for “Waters of the United States.” This final rule was provided to conform the agencies’ 2023 definition with the Supreme Court’s May decision in Sackett vs. EPA.
“I applaud today’s effort by the EPA and the Corps to quickly establish some clarity governing the waters in communities around the country which will allow critically important infrastructure projects to continue progressing,” Ranking Member Larsen said. “However, ultimately Congress needs to step in and correct the egregious misreading of the Clean Water Act by the Supreme Court to ensure communities continue to have access to clean and safe water.”
“Clean water should not be a partisan issue; yet, when five conservative members of the Supreme Court decided to ignore the law, to ignore the science, and to ignore over fifty years of success in protecting clean water, they placed at risk decades of progress in cleaning up our rivers, streams, and coastlines.” Subcommittee Ranking Member Napolitano said. “With today’s rule, the Biden administration has done what it can to protect our waters and wetlands and provide some legal clarity. However, Congress will need to finish the job to ensure our families and future generations continue to have the same access to clean water, regardless of zip code.”
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