• RGL 16-01 - Jurisdictional Determinations   
• Appendix 1 - Request for Corps JD   
• Appendix 2 - Preliminary JD Form   
• Questions and Answers on RGL 16-01   
• Quick Reference Chart for RGL 16-01   
• Sample Questions for RGL 16-01   

• Revised Definition of ‘Waters of the United States’; Conforming
• January 2023 Rule

The guidance documents and memoranda listed below are being used to implement the final "Revised Definition of 'Waters of the United States'" rule, which was published in the Federal Register on January 18, 2023, and took effect on March 20, 2023, as amended by the conforming rule which took effect of September 8, 2023, consistent with the Supreme Court's decision in Sackett v. EPA. However, this rule is not currently operative in certain states and for certain parties due to litigation. Where the rule is not operative, "waters of the United States" is interpreted consistent with the regulatory regime in place prior to 2015, consistent with the Sackett decision. Please visit EPA’s Rule Status page for additional information about the status of the January 2023 Rule, as amended, and litigation. 

Approved jurisdictional determinations (JDs) are case-specific determinations based on the record, and factual questions or Sackett concerns may be raised in the context of a particular approved JD. For each of the regulatory regimes (the January 2023 Rule, as amended, and the pre-2015 regime) under which the Corps is issuing approved JDs, EPA and the Corps (“the agencies”) signed and posted a joint coordination memorandum that established a process by which the agencies will coordinate on Clean Water Act geographic jurisdictional matters to ensure accurate and consistent implementation of the operative regime (see web links below). For draft approved JDs that are elevated to the Headquarters level for review, a memorandum may be issued that provides policy guidance to the respective EPA regional and Corps district offices. The agencies are posting those memoranda on the web to ensure transparency and accessibility to the public. Memoranda providing policy guidance for draft approved JDs completed under the January 2023 Rule, as amended, are posted on this web page below.

The Clean Water Act and EPA and Corps regulations, interpreted consistent with the Sackett decision, contain legally binding requirements. The guidance documents and memoranda listed below do not substitute for those provisions or regulations, nor are they regulations themselves. Thus, the guidance documents and memoranda do not impose legally binding requirements on EPA, the Corps, Tribes, States, or the regulated community, and may not apply to a particular situation based upon the circumstances.

• Joint Coordination Memorandum to the Field Between the U.S. Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the January 2023 Rule, As Amended 
• EPA-Army Coordination Process Update  
• Joint EPA-Army-USDA Memorandum to the Field Concerning Issues Related to Implementation of Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Food Security Act of 1985, as Amended (“2022 Ag Memo”) 
• Memorandum to the Field on Exemptions from Regulation Under Section 404(f)(1)(C) of the CWA for the Construction or Maintenance of Irrigation Ditches and for the Maintenance of Drainage Ditches (“2020 Ditch Exemptions Memo”) 
• Waters That Qualify as “Traditional Navigable Waters” Under Section (a)(1) of the Agencies’ Regulations (“TNW Guidance”) 

The agencies utilized the materials listed below in implementing the pre-2015 regulatory regime. In light of litigation, the agencies are interpreting "waters of the United States" consistent with the pre-2015 regulatory regime in certain states and for certain parties until further notice. Additionally, and as explained above, the agencies will interpret the phrase “waters of the United States” consistent with the Supreme Court’s decision in Sackett. Thus, certain aspects of the documents listed below may no longer be in effect. Please visit EPA’s Rule Status page for additional information about the status of the January 2023 Rule, as amended, and litigation.

Approved jurisdictional determinations (JDs) are case-specific determinations based on the record, and factual questions or Sackett concerns may be raised in the context of a particular approved JD. For each of the regulatory regimes (the January 2023 Rule, as amended, and the pre-2015 regime) under which the Corps is issuing approved JDs, EPA and the Corps (“the agencies”) signed and posted a joint coordination memorandum that established a process by which the agencies will coordinate on Clean Water Act geographic jurisdictional matters to ensure accurate and consistent implementation of the operative regime (see web links below). For draft approved JDs that are elevated to the Headquarters level for review, a memorandum may be issued that provides policy guidance to the respective EPA regional and Corps district offices. The agencies are posting those memoranda on the web to ensure transparency and accessibility to the public. Memoranda providing policy guidance for draft approved JDs completed under the pre-2015 regulatory regime are posted on this web page below.

The Clean Water Act and EPA and Corps regulations, interpreted consistent with the Sackett decision, contain legally binding requirements. The guidance documents and memoranda listed below do not substitute for those provisions or regulations, nor are they regulations themselves. Thus, the guidance documents and memoranda do not impose legally binding requirements on EPA, the Corps, Tribes, States, or the regulated community, and may not apply to a particular situation based upon the circumstances.

• Joint Coordination Memorandum to the Field Between the U.S. Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the Pre-2015 Regulatory Regime
• EPA-Army Coordination Process Update
• Joint EPA-Army-USDA Memorandum to the Field Concerning Issues Related to Implementation of Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Food Security Act of 1985, as Amended (“2022 Ag Memo”)
• Memorandum to the Field on Exemptions from Regulation Under Section 404(f)(1)(C) of the CWA for the Construction or Maintenance of Irrigation Ditches and for the Maintenance of Drainage Ditches (“2020 Ditch Exemptions Memo”)
• Waters That Qualify as “Traditional Navigable Waters” Under Section (a)(1) of the Agencies’ Regulations (“TNW Guidance”)

• CWA Guidance to Implement the U.S. Supreme Court Decision for the Rapanos and Carabell Cases

• 2003 SWANCC Guidance - Guidance clarifying the Supreme Court’s decision in Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. USACE (2001) and federal regulation of "navigable waters".