Agricultural groups are praising Monday’s surprise announcement from the U.S. Supreme Court to hear an appeal in a Waters of the U.S. case.
Scott Yager with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association says the Supreme Court announcing it will review the Sackett v. EPA case from the 9th Circuit Court is, “absolutely good news for producers.” He tells Brownfield, “When you look at a decision like this from the Supreme Court, there’s not a lot to look at, meaning there’s an order but you can read a lot in between the lines of that order and understanding what their thought process is in granting this case.”
Yager tells Brownfield with the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers developing yet another WOTUS rule, it is unusual for the high court to get involved but, “That’s not what happened here. In this case, the Supreme Court really intervened during a rulemaking process. To me, that looks like they’re chomping at the bit to provide some clarity and put this issue to rest, so for that reason, we’re cautiously optimistic.”
Yager says the caution is because the WOTUS issues are complicated, spanning policy, science, and legal issues that split the high court before but he’s hopeful the court provides the guidance to keep this from ping ponging every time there’s a change in the administration.
