NARUC Commends EPA And Army Corps For Revised WOTUS Proposal

Yesterday, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Army recently proposed a substantial revised definition to the “Waters of the United States.” That definition clarifies the scope of federal authority. Overall, the revisions are generally consistent with that requested by a NARUC resolution.

In response to the proposed revisions, National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners President Nick Wagner made the following statement:

”Because of our concerns about the overbreadth and possible impact of the 2015 Waters of the United States definition, since 2016, NARUC has pressed Congress and the Administration to (1) withdraw the 2015 rule; (2) propose a less expansive rule that respected state authority; and (3) base changes, at least in part, on a cost benefit analysis. The rule proposed today responds to each of those concerns. NARUC commends the EPA and the Army Corps on their efforts to recognize the crucial and important state oversight role and provide needed clarity to the scope of the Clean Water Act.”

About NARUC
NARUC is a non-profit organization founded in 1889 whose members include the governmental agencies that are engaged in the regulation of utilities and carriers in the fifty States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. NARUC's member agencies regulate telecommunications, energy, and water utilities. NARUC represents the interests of State public utility commissions before the three branches of the Federal government.