The executive order asks agencies to repeal or revise an
Obama-era rule defining the scope of the Clean Water Act and
recommends adoption of a narrower standard articulated by the late
Justice Scalia.
On February 28, US President Donald Trump issued an executive
order asking the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the
US Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) to repeal or revise a 2015
rule interpreting the term "waters of the United States,"
which determines the jurisdictional reach of the Clean Water Act.
The order further recommends that the agencies consider crafting a
new definition based on the "continuous surface
connection" test adopted by a plurality of the US Supreme
Court in Rapanos v. United States, which would result in a
significant contraction in the Clean Water Act's scope from the
Obama EPA's 2015 rule.1 The 2015 rule was met with
extensive criticism by some stakeholders and gave rise to a flurry
of litigation. A new rule issued in response to
