Sponsors (7)
The bill reduces federal permitting burdens and clarifies rules for farmers and state agencies—protecting routine agricultural and conservation activities—at the cost of creating regulatory discretion and potential gaps in wetland and water-quality protections that could harm downstream communities.
Farmers and landowners will face fewer federal permitting requirements because most prior converted cropland is explicitly excluded from 'navigable waters,' preventing application of the 2023 'change in use' policy to longstanding farmed lands.
Farmers can continue common conservation practices (e.g., idling fields for habitat, pollinator management, soil recovery) without triggering Clean Water Act jurisdiction, supporting on-farm conservation and habitat objectives.
Clearer statutory definitions (including a 5-year 'abandoned' standard and defined terms like 'prior converted cropland' and 'wetlands') reduce regulatory uncertainty and improve planning and compliance for landowners and state agencies.
Some lands that have reverted to wetland conditions could lose Clean Water Act protections if not classified as 'abandoned' or excluded as prior converted cropland, increasing the risk of runoff, pollution, and degraded water resources for downstream communities.
Giving EPA discretion to determine when land is 'abandoned' creates potential for disputes and litigation between landowners and regulators, increasing legal uncertainty and enforcement conflict.
Ambiguities around what counts as 'agricultural purpose' (for example, water storage, irrigation tailwater ponds, or other water management features) may shift water-quality and management costs onto local governments and downstream communities.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Introduced February 27, 2025 by Marion Michael Rounds · Last progress February 27, 2025
Changes the Clean Water Act definition of “navigable waters” to exclude “prior converted cropland,” and adds new definitions for prior converted cropland, abandoned land, agricultural purpose, and wetlands. It also forbids EPA and the Army Corps from applying the 2023 “change in use” policy or any similar policy to prior converted cropland, narrowing federal water-regulation authority over certain farmed lands.