States Fear CWA Jurisdiction Rollback Undercuts Push For 404 Authority

Trump administration plans to narrow the Obama-era standard for determining Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdiction might undercut some states’ plans to assume CWA section 404 dredge-and-fill permitting authority, a top state water official says, because it would limit the waters subject to the law and reduce the incentive for new state permit programs. “For some states they look at the proposed definition of waters of the U.S., and it excludes virtually all the waters in their state, which would mean...