[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 76 (Monday, May 18, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H3258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
PROTECTING NORTH CAROLINA FARMERS AND LANDOWNERS
(Ms. FOXX asked and was given permission to address the House for 1
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, in 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a rule that would
significantly broaden the Federal Government's power to regulate waters
and adjacent lands under the Clean Water Act.
The Waters of the United States rule would give the Federal
Government jurisdiction over puddles, roadside ditches, irrigation
ditches, and storm and wastewater systems. Federal agencies frequently
place burdensome regulations on the American public, and this rule is
no exception.
Fortunately, last week, the House passed H.R. 1732, the Regulatory
Integrity Protection Act, which would require the agencies to start
over and develop a new rule in consultation with State and local
governments and other stakeholders. This commonsense legislation
prevents an out-of-touch administration from threatening the livelihood
of North Carolina's farmers and saddling local governments with
exorbitant compliance costs.
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