ASSOCIATED PRESS • January 24, 2022
The Supreme Court said Monday it will consider reining in federal regulation of private property under the nation’s main anti-water pollution law, the Clean Water Act. The justices agreed to hear a business-backed appeal from homeowners, who have wanted to build a home where part of it was a wetlands that could not be disturbed without a permit. Jon Devine, of the National Resources Defense Council, said the case could “gut our ability to protect wetlands and other waters. It’s a threat to the clean water our communities depend on for drinking, swimming, fishing and other uses.” Separately, in 2015 the homeowner pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of an underage girl and served less than a year in prison.