Today, the Supreme Court handed down its ruling in Sackett vs. EPA, and the High Court overturned the 9th Circuit ruling that had been in EPA’s favor.
Justice Alito for the majority dramatically narrowed the amount of wetlands covered by the Clean Water Act to include only those with a “continuous surface connection” to larger bodies of water. This effectively rewrites the Clean Water Act to exclude wetlands that are adjacent to, but not directly connected to larger bodies of water.
This is considered a big win for agriculture. The majority opinion adopted the 2006 Waters of the U.S. rule.
The full rule is below:
Sackett Case.pdf
Roger McEowen with Washburn School of Law joined us on Market Day Report for a deeper dive into the ruling an what it means for the 2023 WOTUS rule.
Reliance on vegetable imports remains uneven, with domestic production still anchoring several major categories.
Utah Senator John Curtis joins us for “Champions of Rural America” to discuss new legislation to improve forest management and wildfire prevention and its broader implications for rural communities and infrastructure.
NRECA CEO Jim Matheson joins us to discuss rural electric co-ops’ push for expanded USDA loan programs, rising energy demand from data center expansion, wildfire mitigation and other policy priorities impacting rural power infrastructure.
StoneX’s Josh Linville discusses USDA’s efforts to boost domestic fertilizer production and his outlook on supply and prices.
With the Farm Bill now in the Senate’s hands, industry groups say the stakes are high—and timely action could be critical for producers navigating a difficult economic environment.
Domestic demand policy may play a larger role if export competition continues to limit price recovery.
