39–006 

113TH CONGRESS REPT. 113–568 " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session Part 2 

WATERS OF THE UNITED STATES REGULATORY 

OVERREACH PROTECTION ACT OF 2014 

SEPTEMBER 8, 2014.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State 

of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. SHUSTER, from the Committee on Transportation and 

Infrastructure, submitted the following 

SUPPLEMENTAL REPORT 

[To accompany H.R. 5078] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

This supplemental report shows the cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office with respect to the bill (H.R. 5078), as reported, which was not included in the report submitted by the 

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on July 31, 2014 

(H. Rept. 113–568). 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the House of 

Representatives, the cost estimate prepared by the Congressional 

Budget Office and submitted pursuant to section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and section 423 of the Unfunded 

Mandates Reform Act (Public Law 104–4) is as follows: 

U.S. CONGRESS, CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, Washington, DC, August 1, 2014. 

HON. BILL SHUSTER, 

Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 

House of Representatives, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 5078, the Waters of the 

United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act of 2014. 


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If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Susanne S. Mehlman. 

Sincerely, 

DOUGLAS W. ELMENDORF, Director. 

Enclosure. 

H.R. 5078—Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act of 2014 

H.R. 5078 would prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency 

(EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) from implementing or enforcing certain proposed regulations regarding the 

use of the nation’s waters and wetlands. The legislation would affect direct spending because it would reduce fees collected by the 

Corps for issuing permits under the Clean Water Act (CWA). However, CBO estimates that the change in those fees would be negligible. Because the legislation would affect direct spending, pay-asyou-go procedures apply. Enacting H.R. 5078 would not affect revenues. In addition, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 5078 

would have no significant effect on discretionary spending by EPA 

or the Corps. 

Under the CWA, EPA and the Corps, along with the states, serve 

as co-regulators of the nation’s waters. H.R. 5078 would prohibit 

the agencies from developing, finalizing, adopting, implementing, 

or enforcing the following: • A proposed rule published in the Federal Register on April 

21, 2014, that defines the scope of waters protected by the 

CWA; • Draft Guidance Regarding Identification of Waters Protected by the Clean Water Act, submitted to the Office of Management and Budget on February 21, 2012, that clarifies how 

EPA and the Corps should identify U.S. waters protected by 

the CWA and implement two Supreme Court decisions on this 

issue; and • An interpretive rule published in the Federal Register on 

April 21, 2014, to clarify the types of discharges of dredged or 

fill material associated with certain agricultural conservation 

practices that can be exempted from section 404 permits. 

Finally, enacting this legislation would require EPA and the 

Corps to jointly consult with state regulatory officials to develop 

recommendations for an alternative regulatory proposal instead of 

the proposed rules and draft guidance; such recommendations 

would be provided to the Congress in a final report. 

The regulatory changes proposed under current law would expand the area covered by federal regulations and the number of 

permits issued by the Corps under the CWA. The legislation would 

probably prevent, reduce, or delay such an expansion of federally 

regulated waters. However, because the amount of permit fees collected by the Corps is nominal, CBO estimates enacting H.R. 5078 

would have an insignificant effect on direct spending over the 

2015–2024 period. 

As with similar legislative proposals directing EPA to prepare alternatives to proposed rules, CBO estimates that enacting this legislation would have no significant net impact on federal spending. 

Under the bill, we expect that EPA resources that would have been 

used to develop and implement the currently proposed rules and 


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draft guidance would be used to develop an alternative regulatory 

proposal and a report to the Congress. 

H.R. 5078 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, and any 

costs incurred by state, local, or tribal governments would result 

from participation in a voluntary federal program. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Susanne S. Mehlman. 

This estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant 

Director for Budget Analysis. 

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