Nebraska Cattlemen Condemns WOTUS Implementation

LINCOLN, NE (March 20, 2023) – Today, in response to the Biden administration’s irresponsible Water of the United States (WOTUS) rule taking full legal effect in Nebraska, Nebraska Cattlemen released the following statement:

President Steve Hanson stated, “As the Biden administration’s WOTUS rule takes full legal effect, cattlemen across Nebraska face the undue burden of having water features on their operations subject to federal regulation. Nebraska Cattlemen supports the efforts of NCBA to fight back against unnecessary federal government overreach impacting Nebraska’s beef cattle producers.” He continued, “Nebraska Cattlemen thanks Congressmen Mike Flood (NE-01), Don Bacon (NE-02), and Adrian Smith (NE-03) for voting to overturn the WOTUS rule in the U.S. House of Representatives and for standing in solidarity with Nebraska’s cattle producers."

Background

Nebraska’s farms and ranches utilize 44.8 million acres, 92% of the state’s total land area. Cattle graze approximately 22 million of those acres. Nebraska farmers and ranchers realize the magnitude of protecting water as a precious resource. Nearly 80,000 miles of rivers and streams add to Nebraska’s bountiful natural resources.

On February 7, 2022, Nebraska Cattlemen submitted comments to the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opposing the agencies’ proposed rescission of the 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule (the 2020 Rule). Further, in April 2022, Nebraska Cattlemen signed onto an amicus brief calling for a clear and limited WOTUS rule ahead of the Supreme Court’s hearing of oral comments in the case of Sackett v. EPA.

For more information on the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s (NCBA) lawsuit, which sought a preliminary injunction to prevent the federal government from implementing Biden’s WOTUS rule, please visit www.NCBA.org.