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Washington, DC – U.S. Rep. Brian Babin (TX-36) voiced his strong objections today to the final rule issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and US Army Corps of Engineers establishing new regulations for what constitutes “Waters of the United States.” These agencies established new definitions granting themselves unprecedented authority to regulate virtually all water flows in America, including ditches and farmland ponds.

“It’s deeply disturbing that the Obama Administration would move forward with this outrageous and egregious expansion of federal government in the face of such widespread opposition,” said Rep. Brian Babin. “The fact that the EPA thinks a tire rut in a field should be regulated as a ‘navigable stream’ tells us all we need to know about the bureaucrats behind this federal power grab. Not only does it defy logic and common sense, it tramples private property rights. I will continue doing all I can to roll back this government overreach.”

“More than one million public comments were filed on this rule, and nearly 2/3 of the unique, substantive comments requested EPA to withdraw or significantly modify the rule,” said Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA). “It was even recently reported that the EPA lobbied supporters to pack the docket with favorable comments, making a mockery of the regulatory process.”

On May 12, Babin voted for House passage of the Regulatory Integrity Protection Act (H.R. 1732), which passed the House with strong bipartisan support (261-155). H.R. 1732 would stop the EPA-Corps rule and require the agencies to restart the rulemaking process – this time consulting with state and local governments and other stakeholders to take into account their concerns. More information on H.R. 1732 can be found here.