Monday, October 12, 2015

U.S Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Grants Motion to Stay Against the Clean Water Rule

On October 9, 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit granted a motion to stay the nationwide enforcement of the Clean Water Rule adopted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Administration. The application of the Clean Water Rule will remain suspended pending further review by the court.

On July 29, 2015, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation issued an order consolidating the petitions for review of the Clean Water Rule filed by eighteen states within the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. The states challenged the validity of the rule alleging that expanding the scope of “Waters of the United States” subject to federal control would unlawfully supersede state laws vesting jurisdiction over state land and water resources beyond the limits established under the Clean Water Act.

The eighteen states involved in this litigation are Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, West Virginia, Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Utah and Wisconsin.

Further information on this case is available at docket no. 15-3799.

In August 2015, another group of states led by North Dakota filed a motion for preliminary injunction before the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota seeking an order enjoining the EPA from implementing the Clean Water Rule. This motion was granted in the same month.

Further information on this case is available at docket no. 3:15-cv-00059. 

Written by Chloe Marie - Research Fellow
10/12/2015

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