To preserve existing rights and responsibilities with respect to waters of the United States, and for other purposes.

Prohibits the Secretary of the Army and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from: (1) finalizing, adopting, implementing, administering, or enforcing the proposed guidance described in the notice of availability and request for comments entitled "EPA and Army Corps of Engineers Guidance Regarding Identification of Waters Protected by the Clean Water Act"; or (2) using such guidance, any successor document, or any substantially similar guidance made publicly available on or after December 3, 2008, as the basis for any decision regarding the scope of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) or any rulemaking. Provides that use of such guidance or document as the basis for any rule shall be grounds for vacating such rule.

[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4965 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4965

To preserve existing rights and responsibilities with respect to waters 
             of the United States, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 27, 2012

Mr. Mica (for himself, Mr. Rahall, Mr. Lucas, Mr. Peterson, Mr. Gibbs, 
and Mrs. Noem) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
             Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To preserve existing rights and responsibilities with respect to waters 
             of the United States, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. IDENTIFICATION OF WATERS PROTECTED BY THE CLEAN WATER ACT.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Army and the Administrator of 
the Environmental Protection Agency are prohibited from--
            (1) finalizing, adopting, implementing, administering, or 
        enforcing the proposed guidance described in the notice of 
        availability and request for comments entitled ``EPA and Army 
        Corps of Engineers Guidance Regarding Identification of Waters 
        Protected by the Clean Water Act'' (EPA-HQ-OW-2011-0409) (76 
        Fed. Reg. 24479 (May 2, 2011)); and
            (2) using the guidance described in paragraph (1), or any 
        substantially similar guidance, as the basis for any decision 
        regarding the scope of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
        (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) or any rulemaking.
    (b) Rules.--The use of the guidance described in subsection (a)(1), 
or any substantially similar guidance, as the basis for any rule shall 
be grounds for vacating the rule.
                                 <all>