The governor-elect of Florida, Rick Scott, as well as Agriculture Commissioner-elect Adam Putnam and Florida’s newly elected Republican congressmen are standing up for Florida as they face off against Lisa Jackson, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. 

These days, they don't meet at High Noon somewhere along Pennsylvania Avenue; no, in these modern times, they write a letter. 

Florida Officials Face-Off with the EPA on New Water Regs

In the Scott/Putnam correspondence, Florida argues that the new EPA water rules will damage an economy already hurting, forcing new costs at a time when budgets are already pretty bare-boned.  Bluntly, the Florida letter tells the federal government that these regulations will significantly hurt our state. 

Examples included statistics from Florida's own Department of Environmental Protection -- an agency that one would assume the EPA has some allegiance and respect -- which estimate municipal stormwater utilities alone will have to invest $17,000,000,000.00 (yes, that is $17 billion) to meet these new EPA standards.  Another DEP stat: cost for municipal wastewater utilities will be another $4 billion.

The EPA's response? 

Silly Florida.  EPA's  regional administrator Gwen Fleming labelled the DEP stats as "doomsday, exaggerated claims."  And, the feds also had the audacity to educate Florida about tourism:  again, according to Fleming, tourism needs these new water rules. 

Result: 15 Month Delay Before Regs Go Into Effect

Today, it's being reported that the feds have given Florida around a year and half's reprieve on the new water regulations -- now, we've got 15 months before they become law.

Let's see what happens next.

The full text of the proposed regulations appear in the Federal Register, and are online if you wish to read them in their entirety.