The results of last week's election may spell the end for the controversial Waters of the U.S. rule, Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., said Monday, Nov. 14.
With Republicans holding a majority in both chambers of Congress and Donald Trump winning the White House, Hoeven said there are "at least three viable paths" to repealing the Environmental Protection Agency's rule, which attempts to clarify what waterways are protected by the Clean Water Act. Critics have cited it as an example of federal overreach.
"WOTUS has posed a real problem for job creators across our nation, including our farmers and ranchers, and we are now in a strong position to repeal the rule permanently," Hoeven said in a news release.
Trump called for eliminating the Waters of the U.S. rule in a September speech, referring to it as among the federal government's "most intrusive regulations," according to the League of Conservation Voters.
In a news release, Hoeven laid out three options for repealing the rule: Congress could rescind it legislatively next year, the new administration could rescind it through the rulemaking process, or the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals could strike it down.
