Opponents of the “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule issued by EPA face difficult odds in Congress, says DTN, citing a Library of Congress study on legislative options for derailing regulations. The study said lawmakers could pass bills that restrict or deny funding to EPA to enforce the rule, propose a stand-alone bill to overturn the rule or amend the clean water law to de-fang WOTUS.
DTN quoted the study as saying, “Each option faces a steep path to enactment, because President Obama likely would oppose legislation to halt or weaken a major regulatory initiative of the administration such as the ‘waters of the United States,’ rule.” President Obama vetoed a congressional resolution of disapproval, a legislative device to nullify an agency regulation, and senators failed to override the veto in a vote last week.