Protecting Our Backyards
By Rep. Kristi Noem
May 29, 2015
America’s protection of property rights has always set us apart from others around the globe, but it’s an American value that is under attack today. On May 27, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule that could represent one of the largest federal land grabs in United States history. In the swoop of a regulatory pen, the EPA expanded the federal government’s control to include small and seasonal bodies of water. That means ditches, prairie potholes, and even streams that run through your yard after a heavy rain could be subject to federal regulations under the Clean Water Act.
Without a doubt, we should all be able to turn on the faucet or go fishing and know the water is safe. For years, the Clean Water Act has helped accomplish that, but this latest move by the EPA goes too far.
Under the new EPA rule, farmers and ranchers – especially those in the Prairie Pothole region – may have to get additional permits from the federal government in order to control bugs or weeds in their fields. Homeowners may be required to get permission from the federal government in order to put a fence up in their backyard. Landowners may need approval from the federal government if they want to build a house or even plant a tree.
The costs of permit applications and compliance may be significant to begin with, but any failure to comply with the complex web of federal rules and regulations could result in a fine as high as $37,500 per violation per day. What family can afford that?
Since this rule was initially proposed, thousands of people have reached out to the federal government to say they don’t want the EPA as a guest in their backyard. To push back, the EPA, which is supposed to be an objective arbiter, launched a campaign on social media and elsewhere to gin up support for the government expansion. Their campaign failed and the public continued to criticize the rule. But the EPA ignored these facts, insisting this erosion of private property rights move forward anyways.
The May 27 announcement was the EPA’s final ruling, but that does not mean it’s the end of the road. In early May, I joined the U.S. House of Representatives in passing H.R. 1732, the Regulatory Integrity Protection Act of 2015. If enacted, this bipartisan legislation would stop the EPA from moving forward and send them and their partners in the Army Corps of Engineers back to the drawing board. Similar legislation has been introduced in the Senate, so I’m hopeful they will act quickly to pass the bill.
Once again, the administration is overstepping its legal bounds with this regulation. The Clean Water Act was never intended to be so personally invasive – a reality the Supreme Court has reaffirmed on two separate occasions. It’s time the federal government begin respecting the property rights of hardworking Americans and ditch this rule.
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