NEW YORK (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers are pushing back the implementation of a widely debated Obama-era regulation that's opposed by many small businesses and that seeks to expand government jurisdiction over bodies of water.
The agencies plan to reconsider which bodies of water should be covered by the rule — would shield many small streams, wetlands and other bodies of water from pollution and development — and are delaying the effective date of the Waters of the United States rule by two years while they make that determination. The agencies did not set an effective date — the EPA said in a statement it would be set when the rule is officially published in the Federal Register.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order a year ago directing the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to review the rule issued in 2015 and related to the Clean Water Act. Some small business groups and agricultural organizations oppose the regulation, claiming that it imposes unfair limits on the use of private lands. Small business advocates contend the rule would prevent companies from making improvements to their property — for example, creating parking lots — without going through a lengthy and expensive permit process.
Some small business groups and environmental groups support the rule, which has been the subject of federal litigation.
The rule and information about it, including public comments pro and con, can be found on the Federal Register website, https://bit.ly/2nF4E9w .