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WASHINGTON – Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., today voted in favor of a disapproval resolution seeking to stop the Obama administration from implementing its flawed “Waters of the United States” rule, which would negatively impact North Carolina farmers and landowners. The measure passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 253- 166.

“Federal agencies frequently place burdensome regulations on the American public, and the ‘Waters of the United States’ rule is no exception,” said Foxx. “This resolution would prevent an out-of-touch administration from threatening the livelihood of North Carolina’s farmers and saddling local governments with exorbitant compliance costs.”

In 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a rule that would significantly broaden the federal government’s power to regulate waters and adjacent lands under the Clean Water Act. The rule would give the federal government jurisdiction over puddles, roadside ditches, irrigation ditches and storm and wastewater systems.

The Congressional Review Act of 1996 established a process through which Congress can overturn regulations issued by federal agencies by enacting a joint resolution of disapproval. The Senate passed the disapproval resolution, S.J.Res. 22, on Nov. 4 by a vote of 53-44. A disapproval resolution must be signed by the president before it can go into effect.

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U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx represents North Carolina’s 5th Congressional District and is the elected Republican Conference Secretary. Dr. Foxx is the chair of the House Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Higher Education and serves as Vice Chair of the House Rules Committee.