Supreme Court Decision Does Not Restrict USDA Authority to Protect Farmers, Competition Under the Packers and Stockyards Act
Hello Everyone,
It’s been a while. Hope all is well.
I kept wondering where all those progressive Texans have been hiding who once elected LBJ, Ann Richards and Jim Hightower. Looks like they’ve been there all along.
Basel Musharbash hits the nail on the head. Great explanation of the Packers & Stockyards Act that places the current USDA rule proposals squarely in the current context of the Supreme Court’s landmark decision to strike down Chevron. He makes the case that the USDA can resurrect the original and clear Congressional intent of the Act to forge a new path forward out of the ruble of Chevron.
–Dennis
If ever challenged, the USDA’s rulemakings will be reviewed for reasonableness under the “abuse of discretion” standard articulated in Loper Bright and prior cases. As noted above, the provisions of the Packers and Stockyards Act expressly delegate to the USDA the authority to make all “rules, regulations, and orders” that “may be necessary to carry out the provisions” of the Act. In crafting this statutory scheme, Congress envisioned an agency that would “keep pace with the changes . . . in industry,” accumulate experience, and educate the courts on the “methods [of] distribution and manufacture . . . of the great packers of the country.” Toward these ends, the role of the USDA under the Packers and Stockyards Act was molded after the role of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), an agency created to “maintain [legislative] control” of, and “guard . . . against judicial encroachment” on, the enforcement of the FTC Act’s prohibition on “unfair methods of competition.”
Supreme Court Decision Does Not Restrict USDA Authority to Protect Farmers, Competition Under the Packers and Stockyards Act
R Dennis Olson
Senior Research Associate
United Food & Commercial Workers International Union, CLC
Food Processing, Packing & Manufacturing Division
1775 K Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006-1
Cell: (202) 412-8014 * Direct: (202) 466-1514
Email: dolson
Fax: (202) 721-8009