Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Representative Jason Smith (Mo.) announced that the House recently passed legislation he coauthored to overturn President Joe Biden’s overreaching Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) Rule. Biden’s WOTUS rule would lead to sweeping changes to the federal government’s authority to regulate what is considered a navigable water, with major impacts on farmers, ranchers, small businesses, and private property owners.

“President Biden’s Waters of the U.S. rule is government overreach at its worst,” said Smith. “That’s exactly why I’m fighting to stop the Left’s plans to give bureaucrats even more command and control over the lives of Missouri farmers, ranchers, and landowners. While I’m glad House Republicans and Democrats came together to get rid of Biden’s burdensome rule, our fight to get big government off the backs of hardworking Americans is far from over. I’ll continue pushing back against any and all attempts by this administration and Washington Democrats to grow the power of the federal government.”

Smith has a long history of opposing an expansive definition of the WOTUS rule. Smith slammed the Biden administration after it released its final WOTUS rule in late December. Smith and several of his Republican colleagues sent a letter in September to leaders at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to raise concerns about regulatory actions taken by the agencies that would expand their authority under the Clean Water Act to regulate WOTUS. The members warned the agencies to stay within the bounds of authority granted to them by Congress.

In March 2022, Smith and over 200 members of Congress demanded the Corps halt all current rule making actions until the Supreme Court rules on the pending Sackett v. EPA case, which deals precisely with the definition of WOTUS. Smith signed onto an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to rule in favor of the landowners who are fighting for the right to build a home on their own property.

During the Trump administration, Smith brought then-EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler to southeast Missouri to hear firsthand the impacts of President Obama’s disastrous WOTUS rule. That feedback was used to craft the Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which protected Missouri’s water, incorporated sound science, and accommodated the needs of farmers, ranchers, landowners, and small businesses.