Category: Washington DC News

US Senator Mike Rounds is looking for more oversight of government divisions such as the EPA, the US Fish & Wildlife, and the Army Corps of Engineers – all familiar entities to many South Dakotans – through enforcement of already existing oversight rules, and relying on inspector generals to do their job:

Senate oversight of federal agencies will rely more heavily on the work of inspectors general and the Government Accountability Office to root out waste, fraud and abuse, Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) told Bloomberg BNA May 7.

Rounds, the new chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Superfund, Waste Management, and Regulatory Oversight, said he would like to rely more on the existing work of the inspectors general and GAO in overseeing the Environmental Protection Agency, the Interior Department, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

“In the past, I think the inspectors general have not been utilized fully and, in some cases, it would appear they have not had the ear of the subcommittee to go through,” Rounds said in an interview. “I don’t intend to have a flash in the pan where we’re out looking for something to make a headline. What I want is good government.”

Rounds said he wants to improve the function of the federal agencies. That may not mean introducing new legislation but instead ensuring that existing rules and procedures are used properly.

Read it all here.

Rounds Praises Senate Passage of Iran Bill

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today issued the following statement on the Senate’s passage of the bipartisan Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, which passed 98-1.

“I’m pleased the Senate passed the bipartisan Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act today,” said Rounds. “The American people deserve to have a voice in any nuclear deal with Iran. It is important that any deal is enforceable so that we can keep Iran accountable. What’s most important though, is that Iran never be able to gain a pathway to nuclear weapons.”

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Rounds Questions FWS on Aggressive Confrontation Tactics

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, today questioned Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Director Dan Ashe about the agency’s aggressive techniques used to intimidate landowners regarding land easements. During the hearing, Rounds cited a letter he received from a South Dakota farmer who reports encountering an aggressive FWS agent he feels was using intimidation tactics regarding Waterfowl Management Rights despite proactively enacting conservation measures on his land for decades.

“I’m particularly troubled that taxpayer dollars are funding this type of truly aggressive approach to citizens who are voluntarily and proactively enacting conservation measures on their own land, as they have been doing for generations,” said Rounds.

 

Rounds, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Protect Navigable Waters in the United States

Bipartisan bill will direct EPA and Army Corps of Engineers to issue a revised WOTUS rule that protects traditional navigable water from water pollution, while also protecting farmers, ranchers and private landowners.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) joined his colleagues in introducing the bipartisan Federal Water Quality Protection Act (S.1140).

The bipartisan legislation would protect traditional navigable waters of the United States. It also protects farmers, ranchers and private landowners by directing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to issue a revised “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule that does not include things such as isolated ponds, ditches, agriculture water, storm water, groundwater, floodwater, municipal water supply systems, wastewater management systems, and streams without enough flow to carry pollutants to navigable waters.

“The administration’s proposed Waters of the U.S. rule is unnecessary and yet another example of unelected bureaucrats overstepping their boundaries when it comes to rulemaking,” said Rounds. “I agree with South Dakota farmers and ranchers, who continue to tell me this rule would bog down productivity by imposing massive new regulatory hurdles. In South Dakota, our producers are already good stewards of their land – they have to be because their livelihoods depend on it. I am pleased to be an original cosponsor of the Federal Water Quality Protection Act to protect South Dakota producers and put a stop to this unnecessary, burdensome and intrusive regulation.”

In addition to Rounds, the Federal Water Quality Protection Act is co-sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-K.Y.), The Committee on Environment and Public Works Chairman Jim Inhofe (R-O.K.), Senators Roy Blunt (R-M.O.), John Barrasso (R-W.Y.), Pat Roberts (R-K.S.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.V.), Deb Fischer (R-N.E.), Dan Sullivan (R-A.K.), Joe Donnelly (D-I.N.), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.V.).

Background

EPA and the Corps of Engineers have proposed to expand the scope of federal authority over land and water to encompass all water in a flood plain, manmade water management systems, and water that infiltrates into the ground or moves overland, and any other water that they decide has a “significant nexus” to downstream water based on use by animals, insects and birds and water storage considerations, shifting the focus of the Clean Water Act from water quality protection and navigable waters to habitat and water supply.

To address these concerns and to ensure protection of water for communities across the country, the Federal Water Quality Protection Act directs the agencies to issue a revised proposal that adheres to the following principles-

o The Federal Water Pollution Control Act is an Act to protect traditional navigable waters from water pollution.

o Waters of the U.S. under that Act should include

o   Traditional navigable waters and interstate waters.

o   Streams identified on maps at the scale used by EPA to identify potential sources of drinking water.

o   Streams with enough flow to carry pollutants to a navigable water, based on a quantifiable and statistically valid measure of flow for that geographic area, and

o   Wetlands situated next to a water of the United States that protect water quality by preventing the movement of pollutants to navigable water.

o  Areas unlawfully filled without a required permit.

o Waters of the U.S. should not include

o   Water that is located below the surface of the land, including soil water and groundwater.

o   Water that is not located within a body of water (e.g., river, stream, lake, pond, wetland), including channels that have no bed, bank or ordinary high water mark or surface hydrologic connection to traditional navigable waters.

o   Isolated ponds.

o   Stormwater and floodwater management systems.

o   Wastewater management systems.

o   Municipal and industrial water supply management systems.

o   Agricultural water management systems.

o   Streams that do not have enough flow to carry pollutants to navigable waters.

o   Prior converted cropland.

o   Areas lawfully filled pursuant to a permit or areas exempt from permitting.

In identifying waters of the U.S., the agencies are directed that the following do not provide a basis for asserting federal control-

o The use of a body of water by an organism, including a migratory bird.

o The supply of water to a groundwater aquifer and the storage of water in an isolated waterbody.

o The water cycle, including the supply of water through evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, overland flow, and movement of water in an aquifer.

To ensure that Corps and EPA carry out the important analyses and consultations that are designed to improve regulation, a new regulatory proposal must be developed employing the following-

o Federalism consultation under Executive Order 13132.

o Economic analyses under the Regulatory Flexibility Act.

o Small business and small governmental entity review under the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act.

o Review of the unfunded mandates under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.

o Compliance with Executive Orders 12866 and 13563, on improving regulation.

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Rounds, Isakson Request Clarification from VA on New Billing Rule

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and Veterans Affairs’ Committee Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-G.A.) today sent a letter to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Robert McDonald requesting that the VA clarify their billing rule change for home health and hospice providers.

“Providing timely and adequate health care to our veterans is of utmost importance,” said Rounds. “I appreciate the VA’s efforts to reimburse home health and hospice care for our vets, but we have concerns that the manner in which they are doing so is inefficient and ineffective. We must make certain the process is in the best interest of our veterans.”

“At a time when the VA is implementing sweeping reforms to expand accessible and quality care for our nation’s veterans through the Veterans’ Choice Program, it is alarming that it continues to have such difficulties processing payments to non-VA healthcare providers based on a rule adopted in 2013,” said Isakson, chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. “I urge the VA to swiftly address this problem and reform these bureaucratic inefficiencies in order to better serve the needs of America’s veterans.”

Full text of the letter follows:

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April 29, 2015

The Honorable Robert McDonald
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Department of Veterans Affairs
810 Vermont Ave, NW
Washington, D.C. 20420

Dear Secretary McDonald:

We are writing with concerns regarding the implementation of a billing methodology change for home health and hospice providers. We appreciate your attention and response to our request.

As you are aware, in November of 2011 the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) proposed a final rule to establish payments for home health services and hospice care by non-VA providers. VA then proposed a final rule change for the payment methodology for non-VA home health and hospice providers in May of 2013. The effective date for the change was June 2014, but was not implemented until last fall.

The change to the new billing process has been burdensome and confusing for providers across the nation. Home health caregivers have received conflicting information about specific implementation details. VA has promised to provide thorough direction to navigate the rule change. However, it does not appear the guidance is reaching the providers, resulting in untimely or absent payments. Ultimately, these delays can affect veterans’ access to care, which as members of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs deeply concerns us.

Although we appreciate the VA’s attempt to reimburse care for vital services like home health and hospice care, bureaucratic inefficiencies within VA seem to be hindering the effort to better serve veterans. We request VA clarify this rule as soon as possible and expedite all outstanding payments to all appropriate providers. We appreciate your attention to this matter and look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

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