Commissioner Miller Blasts EPA For Burdensome Regulation That Will Hurt Texans (5/27/2015)

AUSTIN - Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller issued the following statement after the release today of the final Waters of the U.S. rule by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  

“The EPA is once again crossing the line with this ridiculous federal overreach. This action will result in a total erosion of our state’s rights under the 10th amendment. It will cripple our economy, damage the free enterprise system and cause undue hardship to our farmers, ranchers and private landowners.

“The EPA’s expanded definition of what constitutes the waters of the United States bypasses the will of Congress. It expedites the ambitions of current EPA and Obama administration officials without regard to the people the ruling truly impacts, and that’s our farmers and ranchers. The EPA’s continuous effort to expand the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act is one of the greatest risks to individual freedom and economic growth in our country. Due to today’s action, potentially wide swaths of land will now fall under EPA jurisdiction, and more landowners will now be faced with complying with the burdensome EPA permitting process.

“I encourage Congress to act swiftly to prevent this affront against private property rights in our country. Otherwise, it will punitively impact sound land management activities and cause more harm than good. Our farmers and ranchers are the original environmentalists, conservationists and stewards of the land. They know how to protect the land far better than some bureaucrat in Washington.”