MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Kansas Department of Agriculture supports new bipartisan legislation regarding
the Federal Water Quality Protection Act requiring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the
Corps of Engineers to withdraw their “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule and initiate a consultation
process with state and local governments and impacted stakeholders.
Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Suzan Metzger recently traveled to Washington D.C. to testify on behalf of
Kansas farmers and ranchers against the current WOTUS rule. In her testimony, Metzger specifically
addressed the EPA’s failure to consult with state and local governments. The new bill specifically addresses
this shortcoming and will require additional direct conversations between the states, EPA and the Corps. The
Senate bill also will set out principles to guide the agencies in their rulemaking process. Kansas U.S. Senator
Pat Roberts, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, has also
expressed his concern about EPA’s aggressive federal overreach and has made it a priority to see that Kansas
farmers and ranchers are protected.
“We are pleased to see the concerns of our Kansas farmers and ranchers have been heard,” said Kansas
Secretary of Agriculture Jackie McClaskey. “Kansas has demonstrated great success in managing our water
resources, and we are continuously working to find more ways to improve. We are thankful to have
supportive leaders in Washington to introduce this bipartisan legislation.”
