March 13, 2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04) released the following statement on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) announcement that the agency will review the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) and begin repealing regulations put in place by the Biden administration.
“I applaud the EPA and Administrator Lee Zeldin’s decision to ensure the definition of “waters of the United States” is aligned with the Sackett decision to provide long-term certainty for landowners,” said Rep. Newhouse.
“The Administrator’s efforts to overturn the harmful regulations of the previous administration is a critical step towards achieving American energy dominance and eliminating unnecessary regulatory burdens on farmers, landowners, and businesses. I will continue to be an advocate for protecting the rights of private landowners against federal government overreach.”
The EPA announced on Wednesday that the agency will work with the United States Army Corps of Engineers to deliver on President’s Trump’s promise to review the definition of “waters of the United States.” Revising the definition will cut red tape and eliminate uncertainty for farmers and landowners in Central Washington who have been burdened by unnecessary overregulation.
The EPA will begin the process by hearing from stakeholders, whose input was not sought by the previous administration, in the new rulemaking process.
The United States Supreme Court’s decision in the 2023 Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency case stated that the Clean Water Act’s use of “waters” encompasses only those relatively permanent, standing or continuously flowing bodies of water forming streams, oceans, rivers and lakes. The Sackett decision also clarified that wetlands would only be covered when having a continuous surface connection to waterbodies that are “waters of the United States” in their own right.
See EPA’s announcement here.
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