Climate-Proofing Our Infrastructure: Building Climate Resilience with the Army Corps of Engineers
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On January 24, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14181 (“EO 14181”), entitled “Emergency Measures to Provide Water Resources in California and Improve Disaster Response in Certain Areas.” While alluding to...more
Last week, I reported that Judge Rosemary Marquez had vacated the Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule. I also asked “what’s next”? EPA and the Army Corps have now answered that question, at least for the...more
JANUARY 2020 - FEDERAL APPELLATE COURTS - U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit - El Paso County, Texas, et al. v. Donald J. Trump, et al. On January 8, 2020, a divided panel of the court quickly granted a...more
Trump administration reverses migratory bird protections - Bullet The New York Times – December 21 - The U.S. Department of the Interior this Tuesday finalized a reversal of protections for wild birds under the 1918...more
On April 21, 2020, The Navigable Waters Protection Rule: Definition of Waters of the United States (“WOTUS”) (“2020 WOTUS Rule”) was published in the Federal Register, and will become effective on June 22, 2020. Publication...more
On January 23rd the United States Environmental Protection Agency and United States Corps of Engineers (collectively “EPA”) announced the finalization of a new rule addressing the Clean Water Act definition of Waters of the...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) published a rule on October 23, 2019, repealing the Clean Water Rule promulgated by the Obama administration in 2015. The rule, which...more
Fulfilling one of President Trump’s campaign promises, on December 11, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of the Army (the Corps) signed a proposed rule to limit the scope of the...more
• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have issued their long-awaited proposed rule to define "Waters of the United States" (WOTUS) pursuant to the Clean Water Act, fulfilling an early...more
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) released their much-anticipated draft proposed rule to re-write the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) (“2018...more
The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers announced a proposed rule to redefine the term “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act on December 11, 2018. The proposed rule, which awaits...more
The Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2018, included as title I of the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (S. 3021), was signed into law yesterday. The new law provides the needed authorization for investment...more
Great news for those of us tracking the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), which authorizes specific projects, creates and modifies programs, and updates authorities for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: The Senate has...more
On September 21st the President signed an FY2019 “Minibus” into law (HR 5895) covering three of the twelve appropriations areas – energy and water, MilCon/VA, and legislative branch. The Energy and Water portion funds the...more
At last week’s Floodplain Management Association meeting in Reno, Nevada, the two of us planned and participated in a panel discussion on federal funding for flood control projects under the Trump administration. Attendees...more
All joking aside about a gridlocked Congress, real progress has been made this week on flood risk reduction authorizations and appropriations. As explained below, it is looking like the 2018 Water Resources Development Act...more
HEADLINES - Congress returns from Memorial Day recess with the Senate in session today and the House reconvening Tuesday. ...more
I often joke with my clients that following issues too closely at the federal level can result in whiplash. To that regard, it has been a very active summer in Washington, DC on the water infrastructure front. Here’s a rapid...more
On February 12, 2018, the White House unveiled its 55-page proposal for infrastructure investment, the Legislative Outline for Rebuilding Infrastructure. The sweeping proposal seeks to inject funding into several key areas...more
Keeping track of the ongoing administrative and judicial developments on the issue of Clean Water Act jurisdiction has become almost as complex as trying to make a jurisdictional determination itself. Here is a handy synopsis...more
In late August, EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced an extension of the public comment period for a proposal to recodify a pre-existing rule defining the scope of waters of the United States. The...more
Environmental and Policy Focus - Trump directs rollback of Obama-era water rule - The Washington Post - Feb 28 - President Trump on Tuesday instructed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of...more
In enacting the “Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act,” Congress expanded the traditional role of Water Resource Development Acts. Where past legislation focused solely on water and navigation projects to be...more