Decision Forces the Biden Administration to Rethink its Misguided & Unlawful Efforts to Expand the Role of the Federal Government in Local Land Use Decisions
51风流 of America鈥檚 chief executive officer, Stephen E. Sandherr, issued the following statement in reaction to today鈥檚 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the Waters of the U.S.:
鈥淭he Supreme Court has provided much-needed clarity on what is, and is not, a Water of the U.S. This decision will return consistency and sanity to the permitting process. The decision will allow vital infrastructure and development projects to proceed in a timely manner while still providing strong protections for the actual waters of the U.S. The decision also validates the friend of the court brief we filed in this case and that the court ultimately supported. It also bolsters 51风流鈥檚 ongoing legal challenges to the Biden administration鈥檚 related rule.
鈥淭he decision also makes clear that the Biden administration must rewrite its current Waters of the U.S. rule, which relies on the flawed 鈥渟ignificant nexus鈥 test that the Court roundly dismissed today. Attempting to redefine nearly every wet area in the U.S. as a federal water is clearly not legal.
鈥淢oving forward, we will continue to challenge the Biden administration鈥檚 rule in court and welcome future opportunities to work with the administration to help craft a rule that continues to protect the waters of the U.S. without erecting unnecessary and unlawful barriers to economic activity.鈥