U.S. Constitutional Law Page 1Legislative Powers

Legislative Powers, Part II

The Commerce Clause&

The Affordable Care Act

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Definitions

Interstate – crossing state borders

Intrastate – activity within state borders

Federalism - A system of government in which power is divided between a central authority and constituent political units.

Sherman Anti-Trust Act – federal law outlawing monopolies, encouraging competition.

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Commerce Clause

Art I, §8: “The Congress shall have the power . . . [t]o regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes . . . .”

What's really at issue here?➢ Does Congress have to power to enact a given law?➢ Is this something the states should be doing?

Key questions are:➢ What is “interstate”➢ What is “commerce”

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What is Interstate

“among the several states” = Interstate

concerning more than one state

Generally, Congress may regulate when commerce has interstate effects, even if the commerce occurs within a single state.

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Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)

What are the material facts and issue in this case?

Does the Court strictly interpret the Commerce Clause?

What does Ogden claim “commerce” means?

How does the Court eventually interpret “commerce”?

What does the Court say that “among the several states” means?

Above, a 19th century rendition of the Port of

New York

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U.S. v. EC Knight (1985)

Facts of the Case ➢ Congress passed law banning monopolies engaged in

interstate commerce.➢ The EC Knight owned 98% of sugar production in the

U.S.

Question – did Congress have power under Commerce Clause to pass this law?

Holding - The Act was constitutional but it did not apply to manufacturing. Manufacturing was not commerce.

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Lochner v. New York (1905)

The “Lochner Era” is a term used to describe the period when the U.S. Supreme Court consistently struck down both federal and state regulations of commerce.

The Lochner case dealt with a New York state law regulating the number of hours a baker could be forced to work.

The Court held that this state regulation interfered with the “liberty of contract,” which it deemed to be part of the Due Process clause that protects “liberty.”

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Hammer v. Dagenhart (1918)

Federal law prohibit interstate shipment of goods produced by child labor.

Father of 15 year-old claimed this violated his son's right to contract for employment and Congress lacked power.

Court held that this dealt with production of goods, not transport like in Gibbons, and thus fell outside of Congress's power.

Court also noted that only states had the power to regulate child labor.

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Adkins v. Childrens' Hospital (1923)

Adkins dealt with a D.C. Law (federal) which created a minimum wage for women and children working in hospitals.

The law was challenged using the same argument as put forth in Lochner (liberty of contract)

The Court held that while there are “exceptional circumstances” under which this “right” might be limited by government, this was not one of them.➢ This seems to recognize how the dicta in Hammer

diverged from the holding in Lochner.

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“The Switch In Time That Saved Nine”

The Lochner Era came to end in 1937 after President Roosevelt and the Democrats in Congress threatened to increase the number of Justices on the Supreme Court in order to “pack” it with Justices who would overturn Lochner and similar cases.

A series of cases between 1933 and 1935 struck down elements of the New Deal.➢ This resulted in Roosevelt's threat to pack the Court.

In West Coast Hotel v. Parrish the Court overturned Adkins after two Justices changed their votes.

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NLRB v. Jones (1937)

Can Congress pass laws regulating disputes between unions and employers.➢ Under prior Commerce

Clause decision, labor was not deemed to be “commerce”

5-4 decision, the Court abandoned its prior rulings regarding labor and commerce.

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U.S. v. Darby (1940)

Congress passed Fair Labor Standards law in 1938.

Law sought to regulate working conditions at those companies engaged in interstate commerce.

Court upheld the law relying on language in Gibbons concerning these being questions for legislatures, not courts.

Children working on aweaving loom

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Wickard v. Filburn

Federal law regulated how much wheat a farmer could grow.

Filburn grew more than he was allowed, but claimed all of it was for his own use and thus not part of interstate commerce.

Court held test is whether activity has effect on interstate commerce.

Where is the effect?➢ Amount of wheat he

needed above and beyond limit should have been purchased in interstate market for wheat.

➢ By growing he more, he was taking away business from the market.

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Heart of Atlanta Motel v. U.S.

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Questions

What are some of the key characteristics of the Heart of Atlanta Motel?

Why did the motel get sued?

What arguments does the motel raise as a defense?

What does public accommodations mean?

The Court struck down civil rights laws in the late 1800s. Why is this earlier case deemed not to be precedent by the Court?

Why does the court reject defendant's claim that is only involved in local commerce?

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Other Examples

Regulation of surface mining.➢ Court held

environmental laws could reach mining activity contained within only one state.

➢ Environmental impact crossed state line

Application of civil rights laws to local restaurant➢ Purely local restaurant

refused to serve blacks.➢ Court held that mere

purchase of food from interstate market brought activity within Commerce Clause?

But what activity are we talking about here?

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United States v. Lopez

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Questions

What federal law is being challenged in this case?

What does Chief Justice Rehnquist say are the three areas that modern Commerce Clause cases have allowed Congress to regulate?

Which one of these three areas of regulation are at issue in Lopez?

Why does Rehnquist say that Lopez is different than the far reaching case of Wickard?

How does the Government claim that the federal law does substantially affect interstate commerce?

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Post-Lopez: US v. Morrison

Violence Against Women Act (U.S. v. Morrison)➢ Congress passed law

allowing civil action against rapist.

➢ Court struck down law claiming Congress did not have power to do this as there was activity associated with commerce.

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Gonzalez v. Raich (2005)

Woman in legal possession of pot under Cal. law for medical purposes charged with violating federal drug laws.

She claims application of law to purely intrastate cultivation of pot is outside Congress's power.

Court holds drug possession is part of a “class of activity” that impacts interstate commerce.

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The Affordable Care Act

In March 2010 the U.S. Congress passed a law which, among other things, required all American to purchase health insurance or face a penalty.

This so-called “individual mandate” was challenged by 27 States who claimed Congress lacked the power to pass such a law.

Taking current case law (1937-present) into consideration, decide whether Congress has the power to pass such a law.