OXFORD – Members of the Chenango County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution on Tuesday in opposition of proposed regulatory changes drafted by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers which – if adopted – could potentially affect many rural upstate family farmers as well as small business owners within local municipalities.

A copy of the resolution was forwarded to the appropriate senators and Congressman Richard Hanna (R-22) and came on the heels of a recent campaign by Hanna in which he visited a Town of Oxford farm to air his disapproval.

The resolution likely stemmed from a press conference held just one day prior at an iconic Town of Oxford farm on Monday morning where land owners, the Chenango County Farm Bureau and Hanna all met to voice opposition of proposed changes to environmental law.

The proposed rule would redefine the scope of federal power under the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Clean Water Act, creating jurisdiction over almost all physical areas with a connection to downstream navigable waters.

If the EPA moves ahead with the proposed change, many local business owners – most notably small family-owned farms, much like the Marshman's of Oxford – could potentially see the federal government executing what Hanna is calling “a classic example of bureaucratic overreach and excessive government involvement.”