{"abstract":"The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Army (\"the agencies\") are publishing this proposed rule to initiate the first step in a comprehensive, two-step process intended to review and revise the definition of \"waters of the United States\" consistent with the Executive Order signed on February 28, 2017, \"Restoring the Rule of Law, Federalism, and Economic Growth by Reviewing the `Waters of the United States' Rule.\" This first step proposes to rescind the definition of \"waters of the United States\" in the Code of Federal Regulations to re-codify the definition of \"waters of the United States,\" which currently governs administration of the Clean Water Act, pursuant to a decision issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit staying a definition of \"waters of the United States\" promulgated by the agencies in 2015. The agencies would apply the definition of \"waters of the United States\" as it is currently being implemented, that is informed by applicable agency guidance documents and consistent with Supreme Court decisions and longstanding practice. Proposing to re-codify the regulations that existed before the 2015 Clean Water Rule will provide continuity and certainty for regulated entities, the States, agency staff, and the public. In a second step, the agencies will pursue notice-and-comment rulemaking in which the agencies will conduct a substantive re-evaluation of the definition of \"waters of the United States.\"","action":"Proposed rule.","agencies":[{"raw_name":"DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE","name":"Defense Department","id":103,"url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/defense-department","json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/agencies/103","parent_id":null,"slug":"defense-department"},{"raw_name":"Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers","name":"Engineers Corps","id":142,"url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/engineers-corps","json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/agencies/142","parent_id":103,"slug":"engineers-corps"},{"raw_name":"ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY","name":"Environmental Protection Agency","id":145,"url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/environmental-protection-agency","json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/agencies/145","parent_id":null,"slug":"environmental-protection-agency"}],"body_html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/html/2017/07/27/2017-13997.html","cfr_references":[{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":328,"title":33},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":110,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":112,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":116,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":117,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":122,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":230,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":232,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":300,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":302,"title":40},{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":401,"title":40}],"citation":"82 FR 34899","comment_url":null,"comments_close_on":"2017-08-28","correction_of":null,"corrections":[],"dates":"Comments must be received on or before August 28, 2017.","disposition_notes":null,"docket_ids":["EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203","FRL-9962-34-OW"],"dockets":[{"supporting_documents":[],"agency_name":"COE","documents":[{"comment_count":null,"comment_start_date":null,"updated_at":"2023-03-01T01:48:56.789-05:00","comment_url":"https://www.regulations.gov/commenton/COE-2017-0005-0001","allow_late_comments":null,"id":"COE-2017-0005-0001","comment_end_date":null,"regulations_dot_gov_open_for_comment":false}],"supporting_documents_count":0,"id":"COE-2017-0005","title":"Definition of \"Waters of the United States\" - Recodification of Pre-Existing Rules"},{"supporting_documents":[{"title":"Documentation of OMB Review Under Executive Order 12866 for “Definition of ‘Waters of the United States’ – Recodification of Pre-existing Rules”","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-9189"},{"title":"Map of the Applicable Definition of \"Waters of the United States\"\n(Updated July 24, 2019)","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15707"},{"title":"E.O. 12866 Review Version of the Final Rule: Definition of \"Waters of the United States\" - Recodification of Pre-Existing Rules","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15700"},{"title":"Economic Analysis for the Final Rule: Definition of “Waters of the United States”- Recodification of Pre-Existing Rules","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15695"},{"title":"Response to Comments for Definition of “Waters of the United States” - Recodification of Pre-Existing Rules","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15694"},{"title":"Environmental Federalism: Lessons Learned from the Literature Peer Review Combined Documents","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15691"},{"title":"Commodity-Consistent Meta-Analysis of Wetland Values: An illustration For Coastal Marsh Habitat","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15689"},{"title":"Accountability and Decentralisation in Government: An Incomplete Contracts Model","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15684"},{"title":"Enhancing the reliability of benefit transfer over heterogeneous sites: A meta-analysis of international coral reef values","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15670"},{"title":"Environmental Protection in the Federalist System: The Political Economy of NPDES Inspections","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-15664"}],"agency_name":"EPA","documents":[{"comment_count":689688,"comment_start_date":"2017-07-27","updated_at":"2023-03-01T01:48:57.239-05:00","comment_url":"https://www.regulations.gov/commenton/EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-0001","allow_late_comments":null,"id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203-0001","comment_end_date":"2017-09-28","regulations_dot_gov_open_for_comment":false}],"supporting_documents_count":85,"id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0203","title":"Definition of “Waters of the United States” – Recodification of Pre-Existing Rules"}],"document_number":"2017-13997","effective_on":null,"end_page":34909,"executive_order_notes":null,"executive_order_number":null,"explanation":null,"full_text_xml_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/xml/2017/07/27/2017-13997.xml","html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/07/27/2017-13997/definition-of-waters-of-the-united-states-recodification-of-pre-existing-rules","images":{},"images_metadata":{},"json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/documents/2017-13997?publication_date=2017-07-27","mods_url":"https://www.govinfo.gov/metadata/granule/FR-2017-07-27/2017-13997/mods.xml","not_received_for_publication":null,"page_length":11,"page_views":{"count":14007,"last_updated":"2026-04-23 10:15:05 -0400"},"pdf_url":"https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2017-07-27/pdf/2017-13997.pdf","presidential_document_number":null,"proclamation_number":null,"public_inspection_pdf_url":"https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2017-13997.pdf?1501073125","publication_date":"2017-07-27","raw_text_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/text/2017/07/27/2017-13997.txt","regulation_id_number_info":{"2040-AF74":{"issue":"201904","html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/regulations/2040-AF74/definition-of-waters-of-the-united-states-recodification-of-preexisting-rule","title":"Definition of \"Waters of the United States\" - 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