MO, IL lawmakers react to EPA water ruling

(KFVS) - Lawmakers are speaking out after the EPA has ruled on protecting drinking water and streams.

U.S. Senator Roy Blunt, MO,  issued the following statement today after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its finalized Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule:

"The EPA's rule represents an unprecedented power grab by the Obama Administration that will hurt farm families, job creation, home construction, roads, and energy development in Missouri and nationwide. The Administration has no business regulating puddles, ditches, and ponds across the country. I'm working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to block the EPA's massive takeover of private and state waters, and I'll keep fighting to protect Missourians from the Obama Administration's blatant overreach into their private lives and property."

Rep. Jason Smith, MO, released this statement:

"The administration is telling us that this rule won't affect property owners and farmers, and that's an absolute lie," said Congressman Smith. "The Obama administration has misled the American people too many times to get the benefit of the doubt on something this important."

Rep. Mike Bost, IL-12, released the following statement:

"Make no mistake about it: the impact of the EPA's Waters of the U.S. ruling will be felt far and wide. Here in Southern Illinois, our proud agricultural heritage will now be put at risk by federal bureaucrats intent on telling our farmers and family businesses how to use their land. This unprecedented power grab over America's waters upends the balanced, federal-state partnership that has regulated U.S. waters for over 40 years under the Clean Water Act. I have voted to scrap this rule in the past, and I will continue to fight this shameful overreach in the future."

Statement by Blake Hurst, President of Missouri Farm Bureau:

"The American Farm Bureau Federation is conducting a thorough analysis of the final Waters of the United States rule released today by the Environmental Protection Agency. With a rule that is 297 pages long, it is impossible to immediately know whether EPA has addressed the serious concerns raised by farmers and others. As is frequently the case with government regulations, the devil is in the details. Unfortunately, over a year ago EPA launched a campaign to intentionally mislead the public on the impact of its proposed WOTUS rule. EPA ignored Congress and the Courts in proposing a rule that goes far beyond clean water and tries to regulate land use. The final rule must contain substantial changes to what was initially proposed to make it acceptable to Missouri farmers and ranchers."