Posted on 05/09/2016 9:25:50 PM PDT by george76
$16 million in fines dropped, threats canceled.
A Wyoming rancher threatened by the Environmental Agency with $16 million fines for getting a state permit and building a stock pond on his ranch has reached a settlement that will have the fines go away and he’ll keep his stock pond.
WND reported in 2015 on a lawsuit filed on behalf of Fort Bridger, Wyoming, rancher Andy Johnson by officialsl with the Pacific Legal Foundation seeking to vindicate his property rights.
The lawsuit explained federal law clearly exempts stock ponds from the rules of the EPA, which had filed a compliance order against him threatening $37,500 in fines per day – which already at the time of the filing had passed $16 million.
Now, officials the PLF has announced the federal government has agreed to resolve the case, and a federal court has approved. Importantly, under the settlement, the Johnson family’s pond will remain; they won’t pay any fines; they don’t concede any federal jurisdiction to regulate their pond; and the government won’t pursue any further enforcement actions based on the pond’s construction
...
This is a huge victory for us as well as private property owners across the country. The next family that finds itself in our situation, facing ominous threats from EPA, can take heart in knowing that many of these threats will not come to pass. If, like us, you stand up to the overreaching bureaucrats, they may very well back down
(Excerpt) Read more at wnd.com ...
Shame it had to come to that, but yeah!
Exactly!
Feds didn’t have a leg to stand on or they’d still be badgering these people.
I’m am sick to death of the EPA.
The EPA employees and lawyers that didn’t know the laws should be fired.
The family should be reimbursed for all their troubles and legal fees.
The ordinary law abiding citizen paying his own way is considered a racist, an enemy of the people.
Everyone is “sick to death” of the EPA, especially those downstream of the Animus river purposely released effluent.
Pacific Legal does some great things for freedom-loving Americans. Check it out.
Pacific Legal Foundation is one of the very few organizations WELL WORTH supporting.They have won some really big ones and not too long ago a major one here in Florida. if you want to beat the Feds, contact Pacific legal.
A real victory would have been to put the EPA completely out of business and ban their workers from ever taking another gov’t job.
“The EPA employees and lawyers that didn’t know the laws should be fired.”
I’d bet they knew the laws. I say the EPA was trying to bully them, and set precedent, but unfortunately for the EPA it got shoved up...er...they didn’t succeed.
Typical of the Left to push, push, to bully their way. Most people don’t fight government. The old adage “Ya cain’t fight City Hall” keeps people from exercising their right to justice. They figure they won’t win, or the cost to fight too much for them alone.
Good point.
The EPA thinks they have a blank check from the taxpayers so it doesn’t cost them a dime. They have no regard for the stress they put on others.
In some ways, our government is as oppressive as you would find in communist regimes.
They didnt want a definitive court ruling saying exactly that.
Most people; especially small ranchers and farmers just don’t have the money to fight.
And then some.
They do fantastic work.
I just wish I could support them with donations more; donations are their sole source of funding.
Their main focus is private property rights and government overreach...
Trump says the first Federal Agency to go in the trash can is the DOE. Good enough. The EPA is next.
You mean like Levoy Finnicum and the Bundys ?
They will be back with new rules to teach him a lesson.....
They know the laws very well. They use their positions and the force of our too-huge government to bully citizens.
Not many of us can afford several hundred thousand dollars in lawyer fees to fight the government, and these Communist government employees rely on that fact.
I do not think they have learned any lesson as they will do the exact same thing to another citizen, knowing that the odds are in their favor that the citizen will enter some kind of agreement rather than spend money they don't have.
Heck, Obama's administration has been violating even Supreme Court rulings and getting away with it.
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