Process Gas Consumers Group v. Consumer Energy Council of America Interstate Natural Gas Association of America v. Consumer Energy Council of America Petrochemical Energy Group v. Consumer Energy Council of America American Gas Association v. Consumer Energy Council of America United States Senate v. Consumer Energy Council of America United States House of Representatives v. Consumer Energy Council of America United States Senate v. Federal Trade Commission United States House of Representatives v. Federal Trade Commission 935, 81-2020
| Decision Date | 06 July 1983 |
| Docket Number | No. 81-2008,No. 82-177,No. 82-,No. 81-2151,No. 82-1044,No. 81-2171,No. 82-209,No. 81-2020,81-2020,81-2008,81-2151,81-2171,82-177,82-209,82-,82-1044 |
| Parties | PROCESS GAS CONSUMERS GROUP, et al., appellants, v. CONSUMER ENERGY COUNCIL OF AMERICA et al INTERSTATE NATURAL GAS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, et al., appellants, v. CONSUMER ENERGY COUNCIL OF AMERICA et al PETROCHEMICAL ENERGY GROUP, appellant, v. CONSUMER ENERGY COUNCIL OF AMERICA et al AMERICAN GAS ASSOCIATION, appellant, v. CONSUMER ENERGY COUNCIL OF AMERICA et al UNITED STATES SENATE, petitioner, v. CONSUMER ENERGY COUNCIL OF AMERICA et al UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, petitioner, v. CONSUMER ENERGY COUNCIL OF AMERICA et al UNITED STATES SENATE, appellant, v. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION et al UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, appellant, v. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION et al 935 |
| Court | U.S. Supreme Court |
Rehearing Denied Sept. 8, 1983. See U.S., 104 S.Ct. 40.
The principal issue in these cases is the constitutionality of the legislative veto as applied to agency rulemaking. Given the Court's recent decision in Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha,462 U.S. 919, 103 S.Ct. 2764, 77 L.Ed.2d 317 ---- (1983), the summary affirmance of the Court of Appeals' decisions striking the veto as unconstitutional is hardly surprising. These cases illustrate the constitutional myopia of the Chadha reasoning as applied to independent regulatory agencies and cast further light on the destructiveness of the Chadha holding.
In Process Gas Consumers v. Consumer Energy Council of America, the Court of Appeals invalidated the one-house legislative veto provision of the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 (NGPA), contained in § 202(c) of the Act. 15 U.S.C. § 3342(c) (1976 and Supp. IV). The NGPA was a response to the need for financial incentives to encourage the production of natural gas for the interstate market. The Act was a compromise, reached only after months of impasse between the two Houses over the optimal means of deregulating natural gas prices while preventing excessive fuel bills for consumers and industry. Congress finally settled on a phased deregulation of natural gas prices, with a system of incremental pricing to ease the transition. Specifically, the compromise agreed to by the Conference Committee provided for an initial experiment with incremental pricing for a small class of industrial users, while authorizing the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to propose expansion of incremental pricing to other industrial users at a later time. This proposal would be submitted to Congress and would become effective unless disapproved by either House. The veto provision was central to this accommodation, because it allowed the Congress to observe the effects of the initial phase of incremental pricing without committing the nation to a broader program which, it was feared, would drive industrial gas users to oil increasing the demand for imported oil, and raising the cost of gas for residential consumers. The Conference solution allowed the House and Senate to reach agreement and the NGPA was enacted.1
In United States Senate v. Federal Trade Commission, the Court of Appeals struck down § 21(a) of the Federal Trade Commission Improvements Act of 1980, which provides that an FTC trade regulation rule shall become effective unless both Houses of Congress disapprove it. The Act authorizes the Commission to issue trade regulation rules which define unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce. 15 U.S.C. § 57a(1)(B) (Supp. IV 1980). For three years, Congress debated the breadth of the Commission's rulemaking authority, noting that the FTC could, pursuant to the Act, "regulate virtually every aspect of America's commercial life." 124 Cong.Rec. 5012 (1978) (Rep. Broyhill). The two-House veto pr vision was settled upon as a means of allowing Congress to study and review the broad and important policy pronouncements of the Commission.
I cannot agree that the legislative vetoes in these cases violate the requirements of Article I of the Constitution. Where the...
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