Alexander: Appeals Court Is Right To Halt White House Overreach On Burdensome “Mud Puddle”

Lamar Alexander, released the following statement on Friday about the U.S. 6^th Circuit Court of Appeals decision to stay enforcement of the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers’ Waters of the United States rule.

The rule went into effect on Aug. 28, and it greatly expanded the regulatory definition of a “navigable” waterway subject to the Clean Water Act.

Senator Alexander said, “The Obama Administration’s expansion of the Waters of the United States Rule is yet another example of burdensome regulation being placed on some of our country’s hardest working folks. The 6^th Circuit’s ruling today to stay the rule will help farmers in Tennessee and across the nation and will give Congress time to consider legislation to prevent the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers from enforcing a rule so broad it could affect mud puddles on a farmer’s field.”

Senator Alexander has cosponsored the Federal Water Quality Protection Act, which will prohibit EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers from enforcing the Waters of the United States Rule and require the agencies to consult with state and local governments and small businesses on the development of a new rule.