Federal: Rule narrowing state review of federal water permits reportedly cleared White House review
EPA's January 2026 proposal would limit state water quality certification to the discharge and cut the information states may require. A final rule reportedly cleared OMB review September 4, 2026; no publication was found. The 2023 rule remains in effect.
This is a federal rulemaking, and it applies in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania because each state's environmental agency issues water quality certifications that gate federal permits for projects in those states, including permits from the Army Corps of Engineers and licenses from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. On January 15, 2026, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") proposed Updating the Water Quality Certification Regulations, 91 Fed. Reg. 2008 (Docket No. EPA-HQ-OW-2025-2929; RIN 2040-AG47), to revise 40 C.F.R. part 121. Comments closed on February 17, 2026. The Harvard Environmental and Energy Law Program tracker reports that the Office of Management and Budget completed review of the final rule on September 4, 2026; no final rule in the Federal Register had been found when this briefing was prepared, so the 2023 rule remains the rule in effect.
Updating the Water Quality Certification Regulations, 91 Fed. Reg. 2008 (Jan. 15, 2026) (proposed rule), 40 C.F.R. part 121 (§§ 121.3, 121.5, 121.6, 121.7, 121.10); Docket No. EPA-HQ-OW-2025-2929; Clean Water Act § 401, 33 U.S.C. § 1341