On June 21, 2018, the House voted 213-211 to approve the Agriculture and Nutrition Act (aka the Farm Bill), which included an amendment by Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) permanently repealing the 2015 water rule.  According to Rep. Banks, "WOTUS gave unelected bureaucrats at the EPA the power to broadly interpret what is a navigable waterway in a way where even a puddle could be subject to federal regulation. This rule has been harmful across all industries in our country and it is time we remove the regulation once and for all."

Also on June 21, the Senate voted 62-34 to table an amendment by Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) to the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill that would have repealed the 2015 water rule. In comments on the Senate floor, Lee said that the 2015 rule represents "some of the worst kind of lawmaking that occurs here in the swamp," in which Congress "sets forth a very broad, vague standard and an executive branch agency figures out the rest, sometime with disastrous consequences."

Notice: The information on this page may not be current. The archive is a collection of content previously published on one or more NAR web properties. Archive pages are not updated and may no longer be accurate. Users must independently verify the accuracy and currency of the information found here. The National Association of REALTORS® disclaims all liability for any loss or injury resulting from the use of the information or data found on this page.
Advertisement