Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach has joined more than 20 states in a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, asking a federal court to vacate the newly published final rule redefining Waters of the United States and declare it unlawful.

 The United States Army Corps of Engineers are also named as defendants. The new final rule defines the geographic reach of the EPA’s and Army Corps of Engineers’ authority in regulating streams, wetlands, and other water bodies under the Clean Water Act. It follows the Trump Administration's 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which offered a more restrained vision of federal jurisdiction under the CWA.

 The new rule redefines “navigable waters” to include ponds, certain streams, ditches, and other bodies of water under the CWA, as determined by the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers.

 According to the coalition, the rule will affect farmers who may need to get permission from the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to fill or dredge wetlands or waterways, depending on whether those features fall under the federal government’s purview. Developers, miners and other property owners wishing to make use of their land will face implications as well.

 The Supreme Court is expected to issue a key decision on the scope of WOTUS in the next few weeks.

 A copy of the lawsuit is available here.