Press Releases

Washington, D.C. - Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer (R-NC) and Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-MO) issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) releasing its updated Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule following the U.S. Supreme Court’s May ruling in the Sackett v. EPA case: 

“The Supreme Court’s ruling in Sackett was a decisive win for America’s farmers, small businesses, property owners, and those who build our infrastructure. We said from the very beginning that the Biden Administration should have waited on Sackett, knowing how much of an impact the decision could have on their costly, burdensome, and overreaching WOTUS rule. Unfortunately, the Biden Administration’s revised rule barely pays lip service to the Sackett decision. The Court was clear that Clean Water Act overreach is illegal. The Administration is now trying to make Sackett fit with a rule that never should have been issued in the first place. This revised rule ignores fundamental concerns laid out in Sackett and is a missed opportunity to finally end longstanding confusion over what constitutes a WOTUS.”

Background Information:

On February 2, 2023, Graves and Rouzer introduced a joint resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) on the Biden Administration’s flawed and burdensome WOTUS rule.

On March 9, 2023, the House of Representatives approved the Graves-Rouzer resolution with bipartisan support in a vote of 227-198.

On March 29, 2023, the Senate also passed the resolution of disapproval in bipartisan fashion in a 53-43 vote.

On April 6, 2023, President Biden vetoed the resolution of disapproval, siding with far-left environmental activists over everyday Americans, as well as majorities in both Houses of Congress. 

On May 25, 2023, the Supreme Court struck down the Biden WOTUS Rule in Sackett v. EPA.

On June 21, 2023, House and Senate Republican committee leaders asked the Biden Administration for a detailed update on their plans to implement the Supreme Court’s ruling in Sackett.