Hoeven Pushes for Passage of Legislation to Repeal the Waters of the U.S. Rule

Press Release

Senator John Hoeven today spoke on the Senate floor to push for passage of the Federal Water Quality Protection Act, legislation that would rescind the proposed Waters of the U.S. rule and require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to start the process over with more input from stakeholders. The senator and a bipartisan group of farm-state colleagues introduced the legislation, which is being led by Senators John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.). The motion to bring the bill to the floor for debate and a vote fell 3 votes short of the 60 needed to pass.

"America's farmers, ranchers and entrepreneurs go to work every day to build a stronger nation," Hoeven said. "Thanks to these hardworking men and women, we live in a country where there is affordable food at the grocery store and where a dynamic private sector offers Americans the opportunity to achieve a brighter future. The federal government should be doing all that it can to empower those who grow our food and our economy. Yet instead, regulators are stifling growth with burdensome regulations that generate cost and uncertainty. The final rule on the Waters of the U.S. regulates virtually every body of water in the nation. We're working to rescind the rule, either by de-authorizing it or defunding it."

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