Sen. Joe Manchin was one of four Democrats who joined every Republican senator except Susan Collins to pass the Congressional Review Act resolution repealing the Interior Department's stream protection rule. | Getty Senate seals fate of Interior stream rule

The Senate voted Thursday to send President Donald Trump a measure that will kill the Interior Department’s stream protection rule, a key coal mining regulation that was finalized only in December.

The Congressional Review Act resolution passed by a vote of 54-45, just one day after the House approved it. Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia), Claire McCaskill of Missouir, Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota joined every Republican except Maine’s Susan Collins in voting for the measure.


If Trump signs the resolution, as he is expected to do, it will mark just the second time that Congress has successfully used the CRA to kill a rule. The only previous use of the CRA was a 2001 vote to nullify a Labor Department ergonomics regulation.

But it will not be the last. Senate Republicans are expected to move immediately to another House resolution targeting a Securities and Exchange Commission rule that requires drilling and mining corporations to reveal their payments to foreign governments. And the House has several other CRA resolutions on tap this week, including one set to pass Friday that would overturn Interior's venting and flaring rule.

CRA resolutions require only a simple majority to pass and cannot be filibustered in the Senate, though Democrats have been able to force up to 10 hours of debate on each one.