Late last week, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released a Majority staff report detailing findings from its two-year investigation into the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rulemaking process entitled the "Politicization of the Waters of the United States Rulemaking."
The following summarizes the findings in the report:
- Concern regarding the agencies having pushed the rule through on an accelerated timeline that appeared to have been motivated by political considerations;
- The Army Corps of Engineers was cut out of the rule development process;
- The EPA made no effort to ensure the rule was based on sound science;
- The agencies did not consider alternatives to the rule, as they are required to do;
- The Corps went to unusual lengths to avoid completing an Environmental Impact Statement after Corps experts recommended such analysis was necessary, in violation of NEPA;
- Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) and EPA intentionally avoided compliance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act and the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act;
- Public comments were not fully reviewed and considered before agencies drafted the final rule; and,
- The agencies failed to comply with various rulemaking obligations, including Executive Orders requiring consultation with states and local governments and tribes.
It is unclear at this time what impact this report will have on the status of the rule, which is currently stayed nation-wide by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. RCRC will continue to monitor and report out the status.
The full report can be accessed here.