Supreme Court Weakens Power of Federal Agencies
Landmark Ruling in Three Cases Limits Chevron Deference
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In a landmark ruling with far-reaching implications, the Supreme Court has significantly weakened the power of federal agencies to interpret and implement laws. In a 6-3 decision issued on Friday, the Court limited the scope of the long-standing Chevron doctrine, which gave agencies broad deference in interpreting ambiguous statutes. This ruling marks a major victory for conservative efforts to curtail the power of the administrative state.
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The Chevron doctrine, established in a 1984 Supreme Court case, held that courts should defer to an agency's interpretation of a statute if it is reasonable and not clearly contrary to the statute's text. This deference allowed agencies to play a significant role in shaping the implementation of laws and regulations.
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However, in Friday's ruling, Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the majority that the Chevron doctrine should be applied only in cases where a statute is truly ambiguous. If the statute's meaning is clear, she argued, courts should not defer to an agency's interpretation. This represents a significant departure from the traditional application of Chevron, which has given agencies wide latitude in interpreting statutes.
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