Attorney General James D. "Buddy" Caldwell has asked federal regulators to postpone implementation of a rule that would negatively impact Louisiana's agricultural interests and infringe on landowners' private property rights.
The Obama Administration's "Waters of the United States" rule is set to take effect on Aug. 28, but the rule faces a court challenge from Caldwell and other attorneys general.
Caldwell's lawsuit filed last month claims that the regulation is unconstitutional. In a letter to the heads of the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Caldwell and 28 other AGs asked that the rule's effective date be pushed back at least nine months while litigation is pending.
The rule expands the Clean Water Act to give the federal government regulatory authority over vast areas that could potentially connect to navigable waters in the event of a storm.
