McCarthy calls on Supreme Court to ‘rein in’ administrative state in upcoming case
Kaelan Deese
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Republicans in Congress including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (CA) backed amicus briefs Monday calling on the Supreme Court to unwind a landmark precedent that gives the federal government broad authority to interpret laws.
In the upcoming high court term, the justices will weigh a case known as Loper Bright Enterprises v. Gina Raimondo, which asks the justices to pare back the 1984 high court Chevron deference, which tells courts to defer to agency’s interpretations of statutes when the language written in them is ambiguous or vague.
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“As part of our Commitment to America, House Republicans pledged to hold Washington accountable. The Chevron framework makes it easier for unelected bureaucrats to weaponize federal regulations against the American people. The Court should rein in the power of unelected bureaucrats and restore the separation of powers,” the House speaker said in a statement.
McCarthy backed the House’s Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group brief it filed at the high court in the Raimondo case, which centers on four New Jersey fishing companies asking the justices whether the National Marine Fisheries Service can force fishing vessels to pay the salaries of federal observers, which costs roughly 20% of company revenues.
Other GOP lawmakers, including Sen. Ted Cruz (TX) and Rep. Mike Johnson (LA), joined a separate brief supporting the fishermen, along with 34 other GOP lawmakers.
The National Federal of Independent Businesses also filed a brief arguing that “regulatory burdens harm the business community, especially small businesses,” noting that while overturning Chevron might not end the regulatory burden, it would “force Congress to consider the regulatory impact of its laws more carefully before enacting them.”
The case, slated to be argued in the high court by veteran attorney Paul Clement, asks the justices “Whether the Court should overrule Chevron or at least clarify that statutory silence concerning powers expressly but narrowly granted elsewhere in the statute does not constitute an ambiguity requiring deference to the agency.”
Conservatives have long sought to curtail the sweeping authority of executive branch agencies, especially over matters concerning regulations on the environment and fossil fuels that have a direct impact on industries across the country.
Support for overturning Chevron was also raised by several pro-Second Amendment groups like the Gun Owners of America, who argue undoing the 1984 precedent could make it more difficult for agencies like the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to implement bans on gun attachments such as bump stocks.
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The House recently passed a bill known as the Separation of Powers Restoration Act of 2023, which would force courts to decide cases without reference to the Chevron deference.
President Joe Biden has vowed to veto the bill, and the Senate is unlikely to pass it with the Democrats’ majority.