This week, more than 50 business organizations, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Farm Bureau Federation, sent a letter to a group of Senate Democrats, including California Senator Diane Feinstein, who voted against a Senate measure (S. 1140) to scrap and rework the Obama administration's water rule.
The industry letter was sent to the 11 Senate Democrats who recently wrote to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers asking those agencies for additional clarity and guidance on the final “Waters of the U.S” (WOTUS) rule.
In the letter, the stakeholder groups informed the Senate Democrats that the need to ask for additional guidance on the rule is not a real solution as the Administration’s final rule cannot be fixed without the agencies undertaking a legitimate and transparent rulemaking process. The industry groups also urged the lawmakers to reconsider their support for the current WOTUS rule if another opportunity comes before them during the end-of-year appropriations process. Senate Republicans have indicated the water rule will be one of their top targets for a policy rider to be included in this year’s Omnibus Appropriations bill.