Attorney General Frosh Joins Coalition Challenging Trump EPA’s Illegal Delay of Clean Water Protections

BALTIMORE, MD – Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh today joined a coalition of 11 Attorneys General challenging the Trump Administration’s proposed two-year suspension of the “Clean Water Rule,” a federal regulation that defines “waters of the United States” under federal law. In comments addressed to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE), the coalition charges that the proposed suspension of the Clean Water Rule – which is designed to ensure the nation’s lakes, rivers, streams, and wetlands receive proper protection under the federal Clean Water Act – would violate federal law.

As Oklahoma Attorney General, Administrator Pruitt had sued to halt the implementation of the Clean Water Rule. Since becoming EPA Administrator, he has refused to recuse himself from this rulemaking involving the very same issues. Pruitt has appeared in promotional videos for private organizations that have brought suit challenging the Clean Water Rule, and those ads, the coalition alleges, misstated the rule’s provisions. The coalition charges that Pruitt’s involvement in this rulemaking is “illegal.” It states that the process “renders a final rule invalid” due to Pruitt’s refusal to follow ethics review procedures and due to of his lack of impartiality.