National Assn. of Mfrs. v. Department of Defense
Headline: Decision blocks direct appeals and says EPA’s 2015 Waters of the United States definitional rule must be challenged first in federal district courts, changing where nationwide cases begin.
Holding: The Court held that the 2015 Waters of the United States Rule is not covered by the Clean Water Act’s two narrow categories for direct appeals, so challenges must be filed in federal district courts rather than in courts of appeals.
- Requires WOTUS Rule challenges to start in federal district courts.
- Centralizes initial fact-finding in district courts rather than appellate courts.
- Leaves the Rule’s substance open while agencies continue rulemaking.
Summary
Background
A manufacturing trade group and other parties challenged a 2015 EPA and Army Corps regulation called the Waters of the United States Rule. The Rule clarified which waters the Clean Water Act covers and stated it imposed no enforceable duties. Challenges were filed in many federal district courts, while other parties filed “protective” appeals consolidated in the Sixth Circuit. The National Association of Manufacturers intervened in the Sixth Circuit and urged dismissal for lack of appellate jurisdiction; the Sixth Circuit denied those motions and the Supreme Court agreed to decide where such challenges must be filed.
Reasoning
The Court asked whether the Clean Water Act gives courts of appeals exclusive, first-review authority over the WOTUS Rule under two narrow provisions. It held the Rule is not an “effluent limitation” and was not promulgated “under section 1311,” because the agencies issued it under general rulemaking authority, so subparagraph (E) did not apply. And the Rule does not itself issue or deny pollution-discharge permits (NPDES), so subparagraph (F) did not apply. The Court rejected the Government’s “practical effects” test, its reliance on Crown Simpson, and policy arguments about efficiency and national uniformity.
Real world impact
The ruling means that challenges to the 2015 definitional rule must begin in federal district courts, not the courts of appeals, changing where initial litigation takes place. The decision does not resolve the Rule’s substance, and the agencies’ ongoing rulemaking and proposed changes mean the Rule may still be revised. The case was decided unanimously.
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