Continuing his efforts to halt the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Administration’s constant attempts at overregulating our nation’s farmers and landowners, U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03) voted in support of the Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act.

“Today the House casted yet another important vote in an attempt to roll back another regulation from the Administration. The EPA wants to expand the scope of the Clean Water Act on small business and farmers by taking out the word “navigable” from “navigable waters” which would extend its authority to just about any body of water. This means that when a drop of rain touches a ditch, stream, or puddle, the EPA has every right to regulate it,” Luetkemeyer said. “A proposal like this, which would extend the EPA’s reach to waters never intended to be regulated, cannot be left to Washington bureaucrats working behind closed doors and I’m proud to support this bill to halt this federal land grab of our nation’s waters.”

Missouri Farm Bureau has also been in front of this issue and informing Missouri’s farmers and landowners of the potential negative effects  of this proposed rule and applauds Congress for sending a clear message to the Administration.

“If EPA won’t heed calls to ditch its “Waters of the U.S.” rulemaking, Congress should,” said Missouri Farm Bureau President Blake Hurst. “We appreciate Congressman Luetkemeyer and other members of our U.S. House delegation carrying that message to Washington, D.C. and voting to stop the agency’s proposal.”

The Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act would prohibit the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers from implementing a rule that expands the federal government’s regulatory power by broadening the scope of the Clean Water Act. Luetkemeyer is a co-sponsor of the Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act and has signed on to multiple letters to the EPA urging them to rescind this rule.