Title: WATER Act
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
Withstanding Attempts to Encroach on our Resources Act of 2021 or the WATER Act
This bill specifies which bodies of water fall under the scope of the Clean Water Act and are thereby under federal jurisdiction. Specifically, the bill provides statutory authority for the definition of waters of the United States, commonly known as WOTUS, included in the 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule: Definition of "Waters of the United States." The 2020 rule replaced a 2015 rule that included a more expansive definition of WOTUS.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2660 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2660

    To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to codify the 
 definition of the term ``waters of the United States'', and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 19, 2021

  Mr. Latta (for himself, Mr. Perry, Mr. Arrington, Mrs. Wagner, Mr. 
Johnson of South Dakota, Mr. Stivers, Mr. Carl, Mr. Cloud, Mr. Joyce of 
  Pennsylvania, Ms. Mace, Mrs. Hinson, Mr. Walberg, Mr. Burgess, Mr. 
  McKinley, Mrs. McClain, Mr. Jackson, and Mr. Pence) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation 
                           and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to codify the 
 definition of the term ``waters of the United States'', and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Withstanding Attempts to Encroach on 
our Resources Act of 2021'' or the ``WATER Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) In June 2015, the Corps of Engineers and the 
        Environmental Protection Agency published a final rule 
        (hereinafter referred to as the ``2015 WOTUS rule'') to revise 
        regulations defining the scope of waters protected and 
        regulated under the Clean Water Act.
            (2) The 2015 WOTUS rule significantly expanded the scope of 
        Federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act over virtually 
        all waters and wet areas in the United States.
            (3) On April 21, 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency 
        and the Corps of Engineers revisited the 2015 WOTUS rule and 
        finalized a revised definition of the term ``waters of the 
        United States'' to address legal, economic, and jurisdictional 
        concerns surrounding the previous definition.
            (4) The 2015 WOTUS rule infringed on the rights of property 
        owners, particularly in agricultural communities, and 
        represented an alarming regulatory overreach of the executive 
        branch into policies that should be addressed by the 
        legislative branch through the legislative process.

SEC. 3. DEFINITION.

    Section 502(7) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1362(7)) is amended by striking ``, including the territorial 
seas.'' and inserting ``(as such term is defined in section 120.2 of 
title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on June 22, 
2020).''.
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