In a 6-to-3 ruling Friday, the court approved a power grab by corporate interests who want to strip federal agencies of their authority to regulate public health, the climate and environment, worker protections, food and drug safety and more. The court struck down four decades of a precedent known as the Chevron doctrine, that stems from a Reagan-era ruling called Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, which establishes that judges should defer to federal agencies on interpreting a law if Congress did not specifically address the issue.
Justice Elena Kagan read her dissent from the bench, saying, quote, “In every sphere of current or future federal regulation, expect courts from now on to play a commanding role. It is not a role Congress has given them. … It is a role this court has now claimed for itself, as well as other judges,” unquote.
Some Democrats responded to the ruling by vowing to introduce legislation to protect their policymaking ability. Senator Ed Markey said the ruling would create, quote, “a regulatory black hole that destroys fundamental protections for every American in this country,” unquote.
— source democracynow.org | Jul 01, 2024