Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul joined a coalition of 21 attorneys general in a lawsuit challenging the final rule from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) curtailing state authority of the Clean Water Act, according to a release from the AG’s office. In April 2019, the Trump administration’s executive order radically altered the EPA’s water quality certification regulations by restricting state authority. The lawsuit argues the final rule by the EPA violates the Administrative Procedure Act and the Clean Water Act and must be vacated. Under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, a project requiring federal approval that may result in discharges into the waters must obtain state certification confirming that the project meets state water quality standards. The EPA recently issued a final rule arbitrarily rewriting existing water quality certification regulations to limit state authority under the Clean Water Act.
The coalition of attorneys general involved in the filing include those from California, New York, Washington, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and the District of Columbia.
