Missouri Ag Connection - Missouri, Farm Bureau Comments on Repeal of WOTUS

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Missouri, Farm Bureau Comments on Repeal of WOTUS
Missouri Ag Connection - 06/28/2017

Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley issued the following statement following the EPA's withdrawal Tuesday of the anti-agriculture Waters of the United States (WOTUS) Rule. The rule would have given the federal government regulatory authority over almost any body of water on farmland, including isolated streams, hundred-year floodplains and roadside ditches.

"We fought this rule vigorously in court, and now it is gone. I applaud the EPA for finally putting this unconstitutional, Obama-era regulation to rest. It is time we started protecting the farmers and ranchers who feed our families -- and the world. They will always have the unwavering support of my office. After eight years of unprecedented encroachment by Washington onto the jurisdictions of the states and localities, and onto the livelihood and liberty of individual Missourians, it is time for us to keep pushing back."

"We are pleased the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has formally proposed to repeal the previous administration's Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule," said Missouri Farm Bureau President Blake Hurst in a statement issued Tuesday. "Regarding EPA's Repeal of WOTUS. The controversial rule was a classic example of an overreach of government regulations that would have expanded regulations to essentially every Missouri body of water and stream, no matter how small. We also appreciate Governor Greitens' comments to EPA asserting that the WOTUS rule was too broad an interpretation of law and that it should be redefined. We look forward to working with other interested parties to develop a rule which is consistent with U.S. Supreme Court rulings but grounded in common sense."

Greitens released a video celebrating the new leadership of the EPA's decision to repeal the Obama-era Waters of the United States rule that gave bureaucrats in Washington D.C. authority to regulate "streams and other small bodies of water across the country." Governor Greitens also signed a proclamation encouraging farmers to give input to Missouri's Department of Natural Resources and Department of Agriculture to ensure that government gets out of the way.

In the video, Greitens said, "When we took office, we asked our farmers and ranchers what we could do to fight for them. One of the things we heard is that they needed our help to push back against Obama's Waters of the US regulations. Well, we took that message to Washington D.C. and the good news is they've heard us. They've heard that Obama's Waters of the US regulations are hurting family farmers."

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