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Regan forming stakeholder group on water rule

EPA Administrator Michael Regan tells lawmakers EPA is going to start a stakeholder engagement process when it comes to a new water rule.

Regan told members of a House Appropriations subcommittee he has met with a lot of ag industry CEOs on replacing the Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule.

“We all believe that the courts weighed in on the Obama rule (under the Clean Water Act) and that the courts have weighed in with Trump’s navigable waters rule. We’ve learned from both instances.”

Regan says Farm Bureau, ag CEOs, and the environmental community will be a part of the process to look at the lessons learned from both administrations and how to move forward but “not in a ping-pong way.”

He says agriculture needs certainty and small farmers should not be overburdened.

Regan also says he and Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack are in lock-step on the issue.

The Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection rule is under review as ordered by President Biden.