Gorsuch is to the Right of Scalia on the "Chevron Doctrine"--Here's Why it Matters

In preliminary looks at the record of Neil Gorsuch, President Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, reports have already suggested that he is  more conservative than Justice Scalia was on the so-called Chevron doctrine. Sounds like a technical issue just for lawyers, right? Not so. In fact, Gorsuch’s radical stance on this issue helps show why his confirmation would jeopardize the health, safety, and rights of all Americans.

The Chevron doctrine is named after a case decided unanimously by the Supreme Court in the 1980s concerning the Chevron energy company. The doctrine, or rule of interpretation that came out of that case, says that courts should generally defer to administrative agencies’ interpretation of laws that Congress has charged them with enforcing--particularly when the laws are ambiguous--unless the regulation or other interpretation is unreasonable.  As a result, courts in numerous cases have upheld agency rules that protect health, safety, the environment, and other key subjects.  As Ranking House Judiciary Member John Conyers has commented, the Chevron doctrine is crucial to the “ability of federal regulatory agencies to protect public health and safety.” 

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