EPA rule stalled by U.S. District Court

EPA rule stalled by U.S. District Court.
EPA rule stalled by U.S. District Court.
District Judge Ralph Erickson has ordered that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers’ Waters of the United States rule be delayed from taking effect temporarily.

The rule had been scheduled to come into effect Aug. 28, but 13 states, including North Dakota, petitioned the federal court for a different outcome.

“I am very pleased by today’s ruling, which protects the state and its citizens from the serious harm presented by this unprecedented federal usurpation of the state’s authority,” North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said. “This is a victory in the first skirmish, but it is only the first. There is much more to do to prevent this widely unpopular rule from ever taking effect. Still, I remain confident that the rule will be declared unlawful once all the issues have been presented.”

While this recent ruling was only an injunction designed to maintain the status quo, the challenge to the rule still needs to be briefed, argued and decided.

“The states are likely to succeed on their claim,” Erickson said, stating his reason for granting the injunction. “Because it appears likely that the EPA has violated its congressional grant of authority in its promulgation of the rule at issue, and it appears likely the EPA failed to comply with APA requirements when promulgating the rule.”