Happy Holidays and Good Will to All
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The holidays come to county courthouses: Saline County, Ark. celebrates the holiday season at the courthouse, where county employees take about three months to decorate the courthouse and lawn with lights. Santa visits with local residents there during the holiday season. Photo courtesy of Arkansas Tourism Office
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House Natural Resources Committee advances Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act
On November 20, the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources advanced the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act (H.R. 4776), which would make important changes to streamline federal permitting and strengthen county involvement in decision-making by amending the National Environmental Policy Act. Counties support commonsense permitting reforms, and NACo secured provisions in the SPEED Act that would guarantee counties a seat at the table during federal environmental reviews.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency releases new definition of the “waters of the United States”
On November 17, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a proposed rule defining what constitute the “waters of the United States” and are subject to federal regulation under the Clean Water Act. The new definition is narrower than previous rules and codifies the decision of U.S. Supreme Court in the 2023 case Sackett v. EPA.