Defense of Environment and Property Act of 2026

Key Points

• The bill rewrites the definition of 'navigable waters' under the Clean Water Act, limiting federal authority to waters that are navigable-in-fact or permanently connected to them, excluding most seasonal streams and isolated wetlands.
• Waters that only flow after rain, man-made drainage channels, and wetlands without a direct surface connection to a major waterway would lose federal protection entirely.
• Federal agents would need written landowner consent before entering private property to inspect water, must give notice of the entry date, and landowners can be present during data collection.
• If a federal water rule lowers a property's value, the agency that issued the rule must pay the owner double the lost value, and the rule cannot take effect until every affected owner is paid.
• Groundwater is declared to be state property, not subject to federal jurisdiction, and the EPA is banned from using the 'significant nexus' test to claim authority over waters.
• EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers are barred from issuing new rules or guidance that expand the definition of navigable waters unless Congress explicitly authorizes it.