SMALLER GOVERNMENT: Scott Pruitt Is Rolling Back One Of The EPA’s Most Expansive Powers.

A section of the Clean Water Act authorizes the EPA to interfere with the permitting process for waste dumping projects managed by the Army Corps of Engineers. EPA officials can “preemptively veto” projects before a permit is officially applied for or “retroactively veto” a permit any time after its approval, according to the EPA.

“Today’s memo refocuses EPA on its core mission of protecting public health and the environment in a way that is fair and consistent with due process,” Pruitt said in a statement. “We must ensure that EPA exercises its authority under the Clean Water Act in a careful, predictable and prudent manner.”

The power is rarely used but remains one of the most expansive in the EPA’s arsenal. It acts as a fail-safe to catch and discontinue environmentally dangerous projects, supporters say according to The Wall Street Journal.

“I am concerned that the mere potential of EPA’s use of its … authority before or after the permitting process could influence investment decisions and chill economic growth by short-circuiting the permitting process,” Pruitt wrote in a Tuesday memo reviewed by WSJ.

Excellent.

What other bureaus, agencies, or departments could Pruitt be put in charge of?