The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit today
issued a nationwide stay on the so-called
"Clean Water Rule," under which the United States
Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) and the United States
Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) revised the federal definition of
"waters of the United States." The rule, which is often
referred to as the "waters of the United States," or
"WOTUS" rule, had previously been stayed in only thirteen
states, pursuant to a North Dakota federal district court's
August and September rulings (available
here and
here). While additional background regarding the Clean Water
Rule is available
here and
here, in general the rule would expand the application of
various regulations under multiple federal environmental laws,
resulting in significant impacts to the manufacturing industry and
numerous other sectors, including agriculture, development, oil and
gas recovery, and utilities.
