Clean Water Act - Issue Summary
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| What is the fundamental issue? |
| NAR opposes legislation expanding the federal jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act to allow federal agencies to regulate not only "navigable waters" but virtually all "waters of the United States" including ditches, culverts and pipes. |
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| I'm a Realtor®. What does this mean to my business? |
| Replacing "navigable" with "waters of the United States" will not reduce confusion over federal-state water boundaries, the subject of multiple Supreme Court cases. It could, however, prompt another round of administrative rulings that further restrict property development or make the process more cumbersome where wetlands are discovered. |
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| NAR Policy: |
| NAR supports using appropriate scientific criteria to identify regulated areas; keeping the focus on preserving high value wetlands; requiring that local officials and affected property owners be notified about the presence of wetlands; and using wetlands mitigation banking. |
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| Legislative/Regulatory Status/Outlook: |
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved S. 787, the so-called "Clean Water Restoration Act." As passed, the legislation would:
* Delete the limiting term "navigable" and expand the federal definition of U.S. waters to include all "intrastate waters" including "intermittent streams" and "tributaries;”
* Codify two regulatory exclusions (i.e., prior converted cropland and waste treatment systems) which are narrower than current regulations; and
* Overturn two Supreme Court decisions which rejected previous federal attempts to extend the Clean Water Act's reach to waters based on the presence of migratory birds or other creative legal theories.
When the full Senate will take up the committee bill is not clear at this time. A companion bill has not been introduced in the House. |
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