Bipartisan House vote disapproves EPA’s waters rule

The U.S. House of Representatives denounced the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule through S.J.Res 22, which passed 253 to 166. The rule would expand EPA jurisdiction over U.S. waters considerably.

This Congressional Review Act resolution will now go to the White House and must be signed by President Barack Obama. According to the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA), President Obama has stated numerous times that he would veto any resolution of disapproval.

“We are very pleased to see both the House and the Senate go on the record in opposition to the WOTUS rule,” says Pam Whitted, NSSGA senior vice president of government and regulatory affairs. “NSSGA is disappointed that the President will veto this bipartisan statement from Congress, but we will continue to work through litigation to halt this rule.”

The House considered the same resolution, which was originally proposed by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), that the Senate passed in December, reports NSSGA.

S.J.Res. 22 is formally known as “Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, submitted by the Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency relating to the definition of ‘waters of the United States’ under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.”