U.S. Senator Katie Britt Joins EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, Colleagues in Announcing Revision to WOTUS Definition

‘Common sense has finally been restored, both at the White House and here at the EPA’

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) today delivered remarks during U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin’s announcement that the EPA will work with the United States Army Corps of Engineers to deliver on President’s Trump’s promise to review the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS).

“President Donald Trump is doing exactly what he said he was going to do. Here we are, just a few mere weeks into this administration, and once again, we get to say ‘promises made, promises kept.’ There is no issue that when I travel the state of Alabama, literally every single county, that doesn’t come up more than this one. So, Mr. Administrator, I can’t thank you enough for getting to work day one . . . This was the very top of a long list of things that I wanted to see the EPA change course on, and that’s because it affects the daily lives of so many Alabamians,”Senator Britt began her remarks.

Since taking office, Senator Britt made fighting the Biden Administration’s overreaching, ambiguous, and job-killing WOTUS rule a top priority. She spoke on her participation in a May 2023 Appropriations Subcommittee hearing, saying, “When I asked the Biden Administration, ‘do you know how many small businesses, do you know how many employees this negatively affects?’ Of course, their answer was zero. Well, Senator Ernst had me more prepared than that. She had made sure that every single state knew exactly how many people were affected, and exactly how many jobs were at risk as a result. 64,000 small businesses in Alabama were negatively affected by the way the Biden Administration handled this . . .”

Administrator Zeldin has directed agencies to move quickly to ensure that a revised definition follows the law, reduces red tape, cuts overall permitting costs, and lowers the cost of doing business in communities across the country while protecting the nation’s navigable waters from pollution.

Given the U.S. Supreme Court’s watershed decision in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, Administrator Zeldin believes it is time for the EPA to finally address this issue once and for all in a way that provides American farmers, landowners, businesses, and states with clear and simplified direction.

“I’m of the belief that food security is national security, and our agriculture community continues to be under attack, but that is no longer. Common sense has finally been restored, both at the White House and here at the EPA. I am so proud to be here today. The clarity that we saw in Sackett actually being able to be implemented . . . being able to have regulatory certainty, pulling back the red tape regime, and allowing our men and women to do what they do best, providing not only for their families, but for ours. That will ultimately be the result of the hard work of EPA Administrator Zeldin,” Senator Britt stated.

The Senator continued, saying, “At the end of the day, I am just grateful. This is what is affecting the men and women that we serve. We hear this every time we go home, we hear this every time they come to DC, and to get to be a part of actually effecting change, it feels good.”

Administrator Zeldin introduced the Senator where he applauded her efforts to advocate on behalf of Alabamians: “When I met with Senator Britt . . . I went in and she had a long list of questions to ask me, of priorities that she had on behalf of her constituents, and WOTUS was right up there, top of the list. So, from the first moment I met Senator Britt to here today, she’s been a great champion for this cause, representing her home state of Alabama . . .”

Prior to Administrator Zeldin’s confirmation, Senator Britt met with him to discuss priorities important to the state of Alabama. Following their meeting, she issued a statement, saying in part, “Looking forward to his leadership at EPA, where he will implement President Trump’s agenda while fighting bureaucratic overreach that hurts families, farmers, and small businesses.”

Senate Agriculture Chairman John Boozman (R-Ark.), Senators Kevin Cramer (R-N.Dak.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Representatives Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.) and Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), and American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall also joined Senator Britt and Administrator Zeldin today.

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