With the federal government shutdown finally over after five
weeks, the long-term effects are likely to have a lingering impact
on regulatory and permitting programs for months to come. Even
those federal agencies that were fully funded during the shutdown,
such as the US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), were stymied in
their ability to undertake routine day-to-day operations during the
lapse in appropriations. This post highlights two examples of the
shutdown's implications for regulatory reform and permitting in
the natural resources arena.
First, one of the key regulations targeted for
regulatory reform by the Trump administration is the 2015
"Waters of the United States" Rule (2015 WOTUS Rule). The
2015 WOTUS Rule sets forth the Environmental Protection
Agency's (EPA) and Corps's interpretation of a seminal
statutory term—"the waters of the United
States"—that establishes the geographic scope of the
Agencies' jurisdiction for all Clean Water Act (CWA)
