Biden vetoes legislation aimed at blocking his Waters of the U.S. rules
President Joe Biden on Thursday vetoed legislation that would have rejected his administration’s rules surrounding the country’s water policy.
The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Sam Graves, a Missouri Republican, said Congress disapproved of the Biden administration’s version of the Waters of the U.S. Rule, which determines whether the federal government can regulate certain waterways connected to navigable waters.
The Waters of the U.S. Rule deals with whether water that is not directly connected to navigable waters on the surface should fall under the Clean Waters Act. Environmentalists, in a push to keep the country’s waters clean, have argued that waterways should be considered as a larger ecosystem.
Farmers, ranchers and the fossil fuel industry have argued that the rules are overly burdensome and create confusion and high costs for landowners who are looking to make changes.
The Biden administration rule says the waterways should be considered on a case by case basis, avoiding a larger, umbrella rule over what falls under federal jurisdiction. In his veto message, Biden said the resolution would cause increased confusion about the existing rules. The rule has already changed three times since 2015.
“Farmers would be left wondering whether artificially irrigated areas remain excluded or not,” Biden wrote. “Construction crews would be left wondering whether their water filled gravel pits remain excluded or not. The resolution would also negatively affect tens of millions of United States households that depend on healthy wetlands and streams.”
Graves, who pledged to block the Biden administration’s rule when he took over as chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, criticized Biden’s veto on Thursday.
“Once again, President Biden has chosen to side with far-left environmental activists over everyday Americans, as well as majorities in both Houses of Congress,” Graves said. “This veto is just the latest regulatory assault on America’s families, farmers, small businesses, builders, and entire communities already suffering under the President’s disastrous policies of the last two years.”
While the veto leaves the Biden rules in place for now, that could change. The U.S. Supreme Court has heard oral arguments in a case regarding the rule and is expected to issue a decision later this year.
