By B. Kay Richter
Town Courier Assistant Editor
During a major environmental decision on Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Environmental Protection Agency's definition of wetlands. The court sided with an Idaho couple who argued they should be required to apply for federal permits to build on their property.
In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to overturn the 9th Circuit of Appeals' ruling which endorsed President Biden's administration's definition of the waters of the United States, commonly referenced as WOTUS.
There were four separate opinions published regarding the decision to overturn the 9th Circuit Court and their decision to maintain federal enforcement of the Clean Water Act. However, the conservative majority voted to reduce and narrow the power of the federal agency.
The ruling which was in favor of Idaho landowners, Michael and Chantell Sackett, was thought to damage water quality.
The Sacketts desired to build on their property which was separated by a 30-foot road from a tributary to Priest Lake into the Idaho panhandle. Because of the connection to Priest Lake, lower courts had previously maintained that the Sacketts needed federal environmental approvals.
Leslie Rutledge, a former prosecutor and the 21st Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas called the decision a "huge win for Arkansas's farmers and landowners at the Supreme Court," she posted on Twitter.
"As Attorney General, I fought hard against the overreaching EPA rules of the Obama and Biden administrations," Rutledge said in her Twitter post. "The Supreme Court agrees: the WOTUS rule is unconstitutional!"
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, also posted on Twitter.
"This is a huge win for farmers across America."
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders also called the decision a major win for farmers in a Twitter post on Thursday.
"It's a great day for our farmers. The Supreme Court unanimously overruled a Biden EPA proposal to regulate nearly every creek, pond, and puddle in Arkansas," she posted. "I condemned this blatant overreach back in January. And I'll keep fighting to get Washington out of farmers' way."