A congressional effort to strip the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) of its authority to regulate fracking in the 330-mile watershed fell short after an amendment to the Water Resources Development Act was not brought before committee. The amendment, authored by U.S. Representative Scott Perry, a Pennsylvania Republican, would have overturned the DRBC’s longstanding fracking ban and pre-emptively blocked similar restrictions from regulators in central Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C. and surrounding states. A Hangley Aronchick team had previously helped maintain the ban following a legal challenge from several legislators and municipalities.
Shareholder Steven Miano spoke with Inside Climate News about the legal questions raised by the effort to undo the DRBC’s authority.
“There would still be a legitimate argument that Congress can’t undo this authority of the DRBC to regulate because it was granted that authority by the Supreme Court,” he said. “There could well be a fight in federal court over whether Congress can strip the DRBC of its ability to do something that is in their Compact.”
The news was also covered on NJ Spotlight News and CentralJersey.com.
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