Governor Pence Statement on Indiana Joining Lawsuit Challenging EPA’s Rule Redefining “Waters of the United States”

Pence: “EPA must be held accountable”

Indianapolis –Governor Mike Pence today offered the following statement regarding Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller’s decision to enter Indiana into a lawsuit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s final “Waters of the United States” rule.

“I am pleased that Indiana will join more than two dozen other states that are challenging the final ‘Waters of the United States’ rule.  Once again, the Environmental Protection Agency has stretched beyond its authority under federal law, and they must be held accountable.  They cannot be allowed to continue to expand federal authority over more aspects of Hoosiers’ lives.”

In November of 2014, Governor Pence and Lt. Governor Sue Ellspermann, as well as the Indiana Department of Environmental Management and the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, sent letters to the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers urging them to withdraw the proposed rule that redefines “Waters of the United States” protected under the Clean Water Act.