(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine today praised the joint resolution passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate disapproving the “Stream Protection Rule.”
“I applaud Congress for voting to set aside this unlawful regulation, and I hope that the President will sign the joint resolution of disapproval,” Attorney General DeWine said.
On Jan. 17, Attorney General DeWine and West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey led a group of 13 states in challenging the rule and asking Congress to use its authority under the Congressional Review Act to disapprove it. In a lawsuit filed Jan. 17, the states argued that the rule, which would drastically limit coal mining in Ohio and other states, was adopted by Obama Administration regulators without meaningful consultation with the states, despite states’ objections, and contrary to the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act as passed by Congress.
If President Trump signs the disapproval resolution, the regulatory system that was in effect up until Jan. 19, 2017, will continue to operate and the state lawsuit likely will not need to go forward.