{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://fulcher.house.gov/2023/05/25/id-88ed2e2f-76c6-424d-97b5-28749909c852/", "Fulcher Praises SCOTUS Decision on WOTUS Involving Idaho First District Family", "2023-05-25", "2023", "2023-05", "Republican", "House", "ID", "Russ Fulcher", "F000469", "fulcher.house.gov", "fulcher", "https://fulcher.house.gov/category/press-releases/", "scraper", "Contact:\n\nDaniel Tellez\n\n202-225-6611\n\ndaniel.tellez@mail.house.gov\n\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Today, Congressman Russ Fulcher (R-ID) issued a statement in support of the Supreme Court ruling in Sackett v. EPA, a case that has far-reaching implications for property owners across the nation and the way \u201cwaters of the U.S.\u201d (WOTUS) are regulated. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of the Sacketts, an Idaho family.\n\n\u201cThe Supreme Court\u2019s decision to reject the EPA\u2019s expanded definition of WOTUS and uphold the rights of the Sackett family to build their home on their own property stands as a powerful affirmation of individual property rights,\u201d stated Congressman Russ Fulcher. \u201cFor Idahoans, water is a lifeline and local control has a long, proud tradition. I commend the Court\u2019s recognition of the Sacketts\u2019 constitutional rights and the significance of protecting Idaho\u2019s ranchers, farmers, irrigators, and landowners from regulatory overreach.\u201d\n\nSince 2021, Congressman Fulcher has urged the EPA to halt any implementation of an expanded definition of WOTUS until the Supreme Court ruled on Sackett v. EPA. In 2021, as the agency looked poised to expand the definition of \u201cnavigable waters,\u201d Rep. Fulcher wrote that \u201crather than soliciting and genuinely listening to input from the general public, small businesses, the Agencies intend to proceed with a rulemaking that will once again confuse regulated parties and lead to the same misinterpretations of legal standards as the Obama Administration\u2019s WOTUS rule.\u201d In 2022, Rep. Fulcher warned that moving ahead with changes to WOTUS would constitute a \u201cmisuse of agency resources and taxpayer dollars\u201d and \u201cwould only serve to leave the regulated community with prolonged uncertainty regarding regulations and enforcement.\u201d In 2023, Rep. Fulcher voted for H.J. Res. 27, which would block the Biden Administration\u2019s WOTUS rule. The bill passed the House of Representatives with a bipartisan vote of 227-198.\n\nBackground:\n\nIn 2007, the Sacketts set out to build a family home on two-thirds-of-an-acre lot. Not long after starting construction on their lot, the EPA ordered all work to stop, with the potential of massive fines because the Sackett property contains \u2018navigable waters.\u201d The property in question contains no stream, river, lake, or similar waterbody. However, the EPA contended that the proposed house required a Clean Water Act permit because Priest Lake is a navigable water, a non-navigable creek connects to Priest Lake, the non-navigable creek is connected to a man-made ditch, and the man-made ditch is connected to wetlands. The wetlands are separated from the Sackett lot by a thirty-foot wide paved road.\n\nOn September 22nd, 2021, the petitioners filed a writ of certiorari. On January 24th, 2022, the Supreme Court granted a limited question in the case for consideration. The question presented by the petitioners is whether the Ninth Circuit set forth the proper test for determining whether wetlands are \u201cwaters of the United States\u201d under the Clean Water Act.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T23:55:44Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://fulcher.house.gov/2023/05/25/id-88ed2e2f-76c6-424d-97b5-28749909c852/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8472958579659462, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}