The Supreme Court Overturns 1984 Chevron Doctrine

The Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1984 decision in Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., on Friday, June 28. The Chevron doctrine allowed for legislative delegation to administrative agencies to make reasonable interpretations of ambiguous federal laws in which the court is unable to substitute its own interpretation of the statute.

Fishing Lawsuit Leads to Overturn of Chevron Doctrine

The case that reached the Supreme Court started when Atlantic herring fishermen sued the Department of Commerce, fighting back against federal rules which forced them to pay for independent observers to monitor their catch. In two related cases, fishermen argued that the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act did “not authorize the officials to create industry monitoring requirements and that the NMFS failed to follow the proper rulemaking procedure.” According to Oregon Public Broadcasting, they urged the court to overturn the 40-year-old Chevron doctrine. The doctrine was overturned in a 6-3 decision.

Courts Take Control of Federal Regulation

Essentially, the powers once delegated to scientists, economists and other specialists at agencies who have more knowledge and expertise than judges in determining regulations will now be in the hands of the courts. Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. dismissed any suggestion that agencies are better suited than courts to determine the ambiguities within federal laws even if they necessitate professional scientific perspectives. This decision was endorsed by many members of the Republican party. The two related cases presented by fishermen were both advocated by conservative legal organizations, the Cause of Action Institute and New Civil Liberties Alliances, extensively financed in the millions of dollars from the Koch network.

New Challenges for Government Agencies

The decision affects various government agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), labor agencies, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and healthcare. Although the reversal of Chevron will not remove the EPA’s foundational legal obligation to regulate climate-warming pollution, it will complicate matters for administrations to defend the agency’s efforts to reduce pollutants from cars and trucks and accelerate transitions to electric vehicles. The ruling will also pose additional challenges to the already contested Securities and Exchange Commission’s efforts to mandate public companies to disclose information about their climate risks and carbon emissions as well as the elements of the Inflation Reduction Act set by the Biden administration aimed to promote clean energy through tax credit incentives. Workers may also be affected as the Chevron deference increases the difficulty for the government to employ workplace safety regulations and enforce minimum wage and overtime rules.

New Administration Will Face Uphill Battle

Justin Pidot, co-director of the Environmental Law, Science, and Policy Program at University of Arizona Law and the general counsel to the White House Council on Environmental Quality, said that “the conservative courts have increasingly expressed skepticism of the EPA and other agencies as they try to tackle challenges like climate change.” Congress can always enact new legislation that could reverse these cases and mandate courts to give deference to agencies but the challenge is that Congress has not been a functional institution for many decades, and so we have not seen the types of climate regulation that we need,” Pidot said. The upcoming presidential election will not only decide who will be in control of Congress but also which party may retain power within the Supreme Court.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the 1984 Chevron doctrine will have a significant impact on the federal regulation of various industries. The decision was endorsed by conservative legal groups and parties, and new challenges will arise for government agencies. The role of federal courts in interpreting laws will be elevated, and it remains to be seen how the Biden administration and future governments will navigate the regulatory landscape in this new legal environment.

Originally Post From https://wildcat.arizona.edu/155601/news/n-chevron-case/

Nation at Stake After Supreme Court Overturns Chevron – The Daily Wildcat