Tribal Consultation - Pre-Proposal of a Revised Definition of Waters of the US
Consistent with the 2011 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Policy on Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribes, EPA and the Department of Army ("the agencies") undertook Tribal consultation while developing the revised definition of "waters of the United States." Tribal consultation followed the terms of the EPA Policy on Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribes and applicable guidance.
The Tribal consultation period extended from July 30, 2021 to October 4, 2021. During the input period, the agencies convened several meetings with Tribes, intertribal associations, and their members to solicit feedback on the effort to revise the definition of "waters of the United States."
On December 7, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Army (“the agencies”) published a proposed rule to revise the definition of “waters of the United States” to the Federal Register.
On December 30, 2022, the agencies announced the final "Revised Definition of 'Waters of the United States'" rule. On January 18, 2023, the rule was published in the Federal Register, and the rule took effect on March 20, 2023. On August 29, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of the Army (the agencies) issued a final rule to amend the January 2023 Rule to conform the definition of “waters of the United States” to the U.S. Supreme Court’s May 25, 2023, decision in the case of Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency. The conforming rule, "Revised Definition of 'Waters of the United States'; Conforming," published in the Federal Register and became September 8, 2023. Please visit the Rule Status page for additional information about the status of the January 2023 Rule, as amended, and litigation. More information about the final January 2023 Rule is available here.
A summary report of Tribal consultation and engagement for this rulemaking is available below.
Tribal Consultation Report
- Summary Report on Tribal Consultation and Engagement for the Rule: Revised Definition of “Waters of the United States” (pdf)
- Summary Report on Tribal Consultation and Engagement for the Proposed Revised Definition of "Waters of the US" Rule (pdf)
Tribal Consultation Materials
Presentation for Tribal Consultation Kick-off Meetings on August 19 and 24, 2021 (pdf)
Tribal Consultation Letters
Twenty-six (26) comment letters were submitted as part of the Tribal consultation process.
All letters received in this Tribal consultation effort are published online and are linked below. They are also available in the docket (EPA No. EPA-HQ-OW-2021-0328).
Tribal Letters
- Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (pdf)
- Intertribal Agriculture Council (pdf)
- National Tribal Water Council (pdf)
- Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (pdf)
- Barona Band of Mission Indians (pdf)
- Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians (pdf)
- Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (pdf)
- Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians (pdf)
- Makah Tribe (pdf)
- Makah Tribe (Supplemental Letter) (pdf)
- Navajo Nation (pdf)
- Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe (pdf)
- Pueblo of Isleta (pdf)
- Pueblo of Jemez (pdf)
- Pueblo of Laguna (pdf)
- Pueblo of Santa Ana (pdf)
- Pueblo of Santa Clara (pdf)
- Pueblo of San Felipe (pdf)
- Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe (pdf)
- San Carlos Apache Tribe (pdf)
- Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians Cover Letter (pdf)
- Southern Ute Indian Tribe (pdf)
- Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians (pdf)
- Suquamish Tribe (pdf)
- Swinomish Indian Tribal Community (pdf)
- These Tribes submitted comments through Earthjustice and attached Declarations from the NWPR litigation. All Documents are combined into a single PDF for consistency.
Earthjustice letter on behalf of 5 Tribes (pdf)
- Pascua Yaqui Tribe
- Tohono O’odham Nation
- Quinault Indian Nation
- Fond Du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
- Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin