The Senate this week will resume debate on the Federal Water Quality Protection Act (S.1140), legislation that would direct the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers to revise its definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) to take into account the limits of the Clean Water Act’s jurisdiction — as established by court decisions — and the impact on small businesses and state and local governments.

“The recently finalized rule on [WOTUS] is the posterchild of EPA overreach,” asserted Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), sponsor of the bill, referring to a final rule issued by the Corps and EPA earlier this year that defines the scope of protected waters under the Clean Water Act. EPA and the Corps have had statutory authority to regulate pollutants in navigable waters for decades, but Barrasso believes these agencies have “gradually asserted broader authority by expanding their interpretation” of WOTUS.

A similar bill, the Regulatory Integrity Protection Act (H.R. 1732), was passed in the House earlier this spring on May 12. It would roll back the regulation which expanded the definition of WOTUS.

According to the committee report to accompany S. 1140, the definition of WOTUS should not include:

Water located below a land’s surface, including soil water and groundwater. “[T]he final rule considers groundwater to be a flow path that can create federal jurisdiction.”

Natural or manmade isolated ponds, including a farm pond, fish pond, or swimming pool.

Streams that do not have enough surface flow in a normal year to degrade the water quality of a traditional navigable water.

A procedural vote on the bill is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, and if approved, would clear the way for senators to offer amendments.

Highway Funding and Homeland Security

On the House side, a long term highway bill is expected to see floor action this week. The Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform (STRR) Act of 2015 (H.R. 3763), approved by the House Transportation Committee in October, covers a six-year period and proposes to convert the highway program to a block grant funding system with the goal of providing more flexibility to state and local governments. The Senate passed its own six-year surface transportation bill — the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act DRIVE Act (H.R. 22) or DRIVE Act — in July, but the legislation was never considered in the House because it was not fully paid for. See the Oct. 26–30 “Week Ahead” for more information on these bills.

Another round of homeland security bills have been added to the House floor schedule for this week, including the: