NAHB supports WOTUS update
Regulations, along with rising costs, continue to be cited as major thorns in the side of the home building industry.
While material costs continue to push up prices, higher regulation costs not only hike up the price of new homes but also slow down the home building process.
But home builders are behind the revised Waters of the U.S. rule recently sent by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
The WOTUS rule defines, which rivers, streams, lakes and marshes fall under the jurisdiction of the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers. The 2015 regulation was published by EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to clarify water resource management under a provision of the Clean Water Act of 1972.
The document has been criticized for having for an overreach of federal powers, however.
NAHB Chairman Randy Noel.
“We are encouraged that the EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have taken an important step forward to redefine the “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule by sending a proposed definition to the OMB for final review prior to proposing the rule in the Federal Register for public comment,” said Randy Noel, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).
“NAHB looks forward to working with the Trump administration, industry stakeholders, states, and local governments to ensure the EPA and Corps proposal is consistent with Supreme Court precedents concerning the limits of federal jurisdiction over isolated wetlands and ephemeral streams as well as President Trump’s executive order on WOTUS.
Noel, also a home builder in LaPlace, La., said home builders expect the forthcoming proposed WOTUS rule will protect waterways yet promote economic growth by minimizing federal regulatory burdens.
While material costs continue to push up prices, higher regulation costs not only hike up the price of new homes but also slow down the home building process.
But home builders are behind the revised Waters of the U.S. rule recently sent by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
The WOTUS rule defines, which rivers, streams, lakes and marshes fall under the jurisdiction of the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers. The 2015 regulation was published by EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to clarify water resource management under a provision of the Clean Water Act of 1972.
The document has been criticized for having for an overreach of federal powers, however.
NAHB Chairman Randy Noel.“We are encouraged that the EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have taken an important step forward to redefine the “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule by sending a proposed definition to the OMB for final review prior to proposing the rule in the Federal Register for public comment,” said Randy Noel, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).
“NAHB looks forward to working with the Trump administration, industry stakeholders, states, and local governments to ensure the EPA and Corps proposal is consistent with Supreme Court precedents concerning the limits of federal jurisdiction over isolated wetlands and ephemeral streams as well as President Trump’s executive order on WOTUS.
Noel, also a home builder in LaPlace, La., said home builders expect the forthcoming proposed WOTUS rule will protect waterways yet promote economic growth by minimizing federal regulatory burdens.