Blog: What’s in a name? Biden Administration publishes final WOTUS rule
Yesterday, the Biden Administration published a final rule (Final Rule) revising the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS), which will go into effect on March 20, 2023. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) return to the pre-2015 regulatory definition of WOTUS, with amendments to reflect relevant Supreme Court decisions. With this rulemaking, the Biden administration seeks to provide a “durable definition” by returning to the pre-2015 framework and theoretically end the definitional uncertainty that has plagued industry (and the courts) for years. However, the U.S. Supreme Court’s pending decision in Sackett v. EPA may impact the durability of the Final Rule.