Bill Reining In Chevron Deference Introduced

In what is being billed as a bicameral effort, a group of Republican Sens and Reps—including Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), have introduced a bill, the Separation of Powers Restoration Act, that takes aim at the Chevron deference accorded federal agency expertise. “For too long, unelected bureaucrats have relied on Chevron to expand their own authority beyond what Congress ever intended. This has weakened our system of checks and balances and created a recipe for regulatory overreach," said Chairman Grassley of the bill. "The Constitution’s separation of powers makes clear that it is the responsibility of Congress, as the People’s representative, to make the law. And it’s the job of the courts—not the bureaucracy—to interpret the law. This bill helps to reassert those clear lines between the branches. By doing so, it makes the government more accountable to the People and takes a strong step toward reining in the regulators.”

The bill would only tweak the language in the US code on judicial review of agency actions, but it makes a big difference. The issue of Chevron has often come up regarding how the Federal Communications Commission exercises its regulatory authority. Chevron is the deference that has been accorded agencies—per Supreme Court precedent—to interpret vague statutes.