Democratic-led states and cities are teeing up their courtroom battle against a Trump administration proposal that would significantly curb federal wetlands protections.
In a letter this week to EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers, the attorneys general of 17 states, the District of Columbia and New York City told the agencies that their new draft rule defining “waters of the U.S.” — or WOTUS — is at odds with the Clean Water Act and even a 2023 Supreme Court ruling that demolished safeguards for most of the nation’s wetlands.
“It should not be too much to ask that the Environmental Protection Agency fulfill the mission in its name by protecting our waters,” said California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, who led the comment letter. “Now more than ever, we need to ensure robust safeguards for all our waterways, and the people and ecosystems that rely on them. I urge this administration to course-correct and abandon this unlawful rulemaking.”
EPA and the Army Corps could choose to alter their final WOTUS definition based on the feedback they received this week from state attorneys general and other parties. If they do not, the critiques are likely to serve as the foundation for future legal challenges.
