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Rep. Mike Levin, who worked as an environmental lawyer before his election to Congress, blasted the Supreme Court’s decision Friday to overrule a nearly 40-year-old precedent guiding government regulation of the environment and medicine.
The 1984 precedent the court overturned arose from a ruling involving oil company Chevron that called for judges to defer to reasonable federal agency interpretations of U.S. laws deemed to be ambiguous.
This doctrine, long opposed by conservatives and business interests, was called the “Chevron deference.”
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Levin, who represents the 49th District in north San Diego and south Orange counties, warned that the ruling would benefit “bad actors who put profits above the public good” in regulatory disputes.
“The decision to overturn the Chevron doctrine upends the ability of federal agencies to implement laws passed by Congress,” Levin said. “It will have drastic implications on the government’s ability to ensure our air and water is clean and our food and medicines are safe.”
“I am profoundly disappointed in the MAGA-appointed Supreme Court for issuing this ruling. I remain committed to fighting for a fair and functional administrative system that respects the vital role of experts and federal agencies in shaping and implementing our laws.”
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Chris Jennewein is Editor & Publisher of Times of San Diego. More by Chris Jennewein
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