Judicial Review Timeline Clarity Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3905 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3905

   To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act with respect to 
   judicial review of the issuance of a permit for the discharge of 
           dredged or fill material, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 11, 2025

 Mr. Burlison introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
             Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act with respect to 
   judicial review of the issuance of a permit for the discharge of 
           dredged or fill material, 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. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Judicial Review Timeline Clarity 
Act''.

SEC. 2. JUDICIAL REVIEW TIMELINE CLARITY.

    Section 404 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1344) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (t) as subsection (u);
            (2) in subsection (u), as so redesignated, by striking 
        ``Nothing in the section'' and inserting ``Savings Provision.--
        Nothing in this section''; and
            (3) by inserting after subsection (s) the following:
    ``(t) Judicial Review.--
            ``(1) Statute of limitations.--Notwithstanding any 
        applicable provision of law relating to statutes of 
        limitations--
                    ``(A) an action seeking judicial review of an 
                individual permit or general permit issued under this 
                section shall be filed not later than the date that is 
                60 days after the date on which the permit was issued; 
                and
                    ``(B) an action seeking judicial review of a 
                verification that an activity involving a discharge of 
                dredged or fill material is authorized by a general 
                permit issued under this section shall be filed not 
                later than the date that is 60 days after the date on 
                which such verification was issued.
            ``(2) Limitation on commencement of certain actions.--
        Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no action described 
        in paragraph (1) may be commenced unless the action--
                    ``(A) is filed by a party that submitted a 
                comment--
                            ``(i) during the public comment period for 
                        the administrative proceedings related to the 
                        applicable action described in such paragraph; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) which was sufficiently detailed to 
                        put the Secretary or the State, as applicable, 
                        on notice of the issue upon which the party 
                        seeks judicial review; and
                    ``(B) is related to such comment.
            ``(3) Remedy.--If a court determines that the Secretary or 
        the State, as applicable, did not comply with the requirements 
        of this section in issuing an individual or general permit 
        under this section, or in verifying that an activity involving 
        a discharge of dredged or fill material is authorized by a 
        general permit issued under this section, as applicable--
                    ``(A) the court shall remand the matter to the 
                Secretary or the State, as applicable, for further 
                proceedings consistent with the determination of the 
                court;
                    ``(B) with respect to a determination regarding the 
                issuance of an individual or general permit under this 
                section, the court may not vacate, revoke, enjoin, or 
                otherwise limit the permit, unless the court finds that 
                activities authorized under the permit would present an 
                imminent and substantial danger to human health or the 
                environment for which there is no other equitable 
                remedy available under the law; and
                    ``(C) with respect to a determination regarding a 
                verification that an activity involving a discharge of 
                dredged or fill material is authorized by a general 
                permit issued under this section, the court may not 
                enjoin or otherwise limit the discharge unless the 
                court finds that the activity would present an imminent 
                and substantial danger to human health or the 
                environment for which there is no other equitable 
                remedy available under the law.
            ``(4) Timeline to act on court order.--If a court remands a 
        matter under paragraph (2), the court shall set and enforce a 
        reasonable schedule and deadline, which may not exceed 180 days 
        from the date on which the court remands such matter, except as 
        otherwise required by law, for the Secretary or the State, as 
        applicable, to take such actions as the court may order.''.
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