EPA, Army Corps, Sign WOTUS Delay

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has signed an order to block the Waters of the U.S. Rule. A hold of the rule placed in 2015 will soon be lifted by a federal appeals court following the Supreme Court ruling that says jurisdiction of the rule lies in federal district courts, not appeals courts.

Pruitt appeared at the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture winter meeting Wednesday, telling attendees “I am actually singing that today,” when asked about the WOTUS delay.

Bloomberg News reports the White House on Tuesday completed its review of an EPA rule to postpone the regulation until 2020.

Pruitt promises a new WOTUS proposal by the end of the year. The EPA and Army Corps of Engineers in February plan to hold more consultations with state water, environmental, and agriculture officials to find out where they should draw the line on the geographic reach of the Clean Water Act, according to EPA officials.

From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.