Ken Calvert: “With the change of administrations, we were able to reduce the number of issues addressed in this bill, but some issues…”

“With the change of administrations, we were able to reduce the number of issues addressed in this bill, but some issues warrant continued congressional attention. WOTUS is one of them. Deciding how water is used should be the responsibility of State and local officials who are familiar with the people and the local issues. Under the WOTUS rule, however, the reach of the Federal jurisdiction would be so broad that it would significantly restrict a landowner's ability to make decisions about their property and a local government's right to plan for its own development. The language in the underlying bill simply repeals the misguided WOTUS rule and clarifies what rules will be in effect until a new rule is finalized, specifically, the same rules that were in effect immediately prior to the promulgation of the final WOTUS rule. WOTUS is an issue that warrants continued congressional attention and the provision in the underlying bill is the appropriate action to take. For these reasons, I must urge a ``no'' vote on this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.”