Commerce Clause
- Overview The Commerce Clause refers to Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which gives Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes. ...
- "Dormant" Commerce Clause ...
- The Meaning Of "Commerce" ...
- Further Reading ...
What power does the Commerce Clause give the national government?
They include:
- exploring and acquiring territory
- controlling national borders and immigration
- defense against revolution
What does the Commerce Clause entitle Congress to do?
The Commerce Clause refers to Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which gives Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes.
Does the law violate the Commerce Clause?
This power is claimed to exist in the dormant commerce clause. There are two ways that a state may violate the dormant commerce clause. If a state passes a law that is an “undue burden” on interstate commerce or that “discriminates” against interstate commerce, it will be struck down. Kassel v.
What activity does the Commerce Clause regulate in the States?
The Commerce Clauseof the United States Constitution provides that the Congress shall have the powerto regulate interstate and foreign commerce. The plain meaning of this language might indicate a limited powerto regulate commercial trade between persons in one state and persons outside of that state.
What is the Commerce Clause in simple terms?
The Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution provides that the Congress shall have the power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. The plain meaning of this language might indicate a limited power to regulate commercial trade between persons in one state and persons outside of that state.
What is the Commerce Clause and how does it affect business?
What is the Commerce Clause? Article I, Section 8, specifically grants to the Federal Government the right to regulate commerce among the several states. This is known as the Commerce Clause. Simply put, the Commerce Clause allows the Federal Government to regulate any activity that affects interstate commerce.
What cases used the Commerce Clause?
Commerce clause precedentsUnited States v. Lopez, 1995. For the first time since the New Deal, the court said Congress exceeded its power under the Commerce Clause. ... United States v. Morrison, 2000. ... Gonzalez v. Raich, 2005.
When was the Commerce Clause been used?
During the Marshall Court era (1801–1835), interpretation of the Commerce Clause gave Congress jurisdiction over numerous aspects of intrastate and interstate commerce as well as activity that had traditionally been regarded not to be commerce.
What is an example of the Commerce Clause in action?
Thus, the commerce clause authorizes Congress to regulate activities pertaining to the nation's airways, waterways, and roadways, and even where the activity itself takes place entirely in a single state. For example, Congress can pass regulations that restrict what can be carried on airlines or on ships.
What was the purpose of the Commerce Clause quizlet?
The commerce clause gives Congress the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations, Indian tribes, and among the various states. Thus a state may not establish trade barriers against goods from another state, and so could not limit the economic growth of that state.
How was the Commerce Clause used in U.S. v Lopez?
In United States v. Lopez (1995), the Supreme Court ruled that Congress had exceeded its constitutional authority under the Commerce Clause when it passed a law prohibiting gun possession in local school zones.
What can Congress do through its commerce power?
First, Congress may regulate the use of the channels of interstate commerce. Second, Congress can protect instrumentalities of interstate commerce, or persons or things in commerce. Third, congressional authority under the Commerce Clause reaches activities that substantially affect interstate commerce.
How has the Court interpreted the Commerce Clause in the past?
In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court rejected the first two arguments, but upheld the mandate on the third. In other words, the Court ruled that the Commerce Clause did not give Congress the power to force Americans to buy health insurance. But the mandate was a constitutional by virtue of its taxing power.
Does Commerce Clause enhance federal power?
Interpretations of particular clauses in the Constitution have led to an increase in federal power over time. The necessary and proper clause gives the federal government power to create laws that they deem “necessary and proper,” while the commerce clause gives the federal government power over interstate commerce.
Where in the Constitution is the Commerce Clause?
Article I, Section 8, Clause 3: [The Congress shall have Power . . . ] To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes; . . .
Is the Commerce Clause an amendment?
Tenth Amendment: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
How does the Constitution affect businesses?
It includes virtually all business and labor activities. It is no longer limited to goods or activities that directly cross state lines. The Constitution expressly provides that Congress can regulate commerce with foreign nations, interstate commerce, and commerce that affects interstate commerce.
Which constitutional clause has the greatest impact on business?
The most broad-ranging power of the federal government has become the Commerce Clause. This part of Article I, Section 8 allows Congress “to regulate commerce with foreign nations and among the several states,” known as interstate commerce.
What are the 3 commerce clauses?
This power is viewed as consisting of 3 categories of regulatory authority: (1) the power to regulate the channels of interstate commerce, (2) the power to regulate the instrumentalities of interstate commerce, and (3) the power to regulate local activities that have a substantial economic effect on interstate commerce ...
Which clause has a greater impact on business than any other clause in the Constitution?
"The Congress shall have Power . . . To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes." This provision has had a greater impact on business than any other provision in the Constitution.
Why is the Commerce Clause used?
Congress has often used the Commerce Clause to justify exercising legislative power over the activities of states and their citizens, leading to significant and ongoing controversy regarding the balance of power between the federal government and the states . The Commerce Clause has historically been viewed as both a grant of congressional authority and as a restriction on the regulatory authority of the States.
What did the defendant argue about the Commerce Clause?
The defendant argued that the federal government had no authority to regulate firearms in local schools, while the government claimed that this fell under the Commerce Clause, arguing that possession of a firearm in a school zone would lead to violent crime, thereby affecting general economic conditions.
What is the meaning of the "dormant commerce clause"?
The “Dormant Commerce Clause" refers to the prohibition, implicit in the Commerce Clause, against states passing legislation that discriminates against or excessively burdens interstate commerce. Of particular importance here, is the prevention of protectionist state policies that favor state citizens or businesses at the expense ...
Which clause gives Congress the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations?
Overview. The Commerce Clause refers to Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which gives Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes.
Which case ruled that intrastate commerce could be regulated under the Commerce Clause?
In Gibbons v. Ogden, 22 U.S. 1 (1824), the Supreme Court held that intrastate activity could be regulated under the Commerce Clause, provided that the activity is part of a larger interstate commercial scheme. In Swift and Company v. United States, 196 U.S. 375 (1905), the Supreme Court held that Congress had the authority to regulate local ...
When did the Supreme Court stop invalidating the Commerce Clause?
Shift To A Stricter Interpretation. From the NLRB decision in 1937 until 1995, the Supreme Court did not invalidate a single law on the basis of the Commerce Clause. In 1995, the Supreme Court attempted to curtail Congress's broad legislative mandate under the Commerce Clause by returning to a more conservative interpretation ...
Which case ruled that Congress had the authority to regulate local commerce?
In Swift and Company v. United States, 196 U.S. 375 (1905), the Supreme Court held that Congress had the authority to regulate local commerce, as long as that activity could become part of a continuous “current” of commerce that involved the interstate movement of goods and services.
What is the Commerce Clause?
The Commerce Clause is a provision of the U.S. Constitution (Article 1, Section 8) that grants Congress the power “to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes.". This law gives the federal government the power to regulate interstate commerce, ...
Why is the Commerce Clause important?
Congress has historically cited the Commerce Clause as justification for laws and regulations controlling the activities of the states and their citizens. In some instances, these laws lead to controversy over the constitutional division between the powers of the federal government and rights of the states .
What Is Commerce?
Since the Constitution does not explicitly define “commerce,” the exact meaning is a source of legal debate. Some constitutional scholars contend that “commerce” refers only to trade or exchange. Others argue that it has a broader meaning, referring to all commercial and social interaction between residents of different states. These divergent interpretations create a controversial line between federal and state power.
What is the term for the state laws that conflict with federal law?
The courts have interpreted the Commerce Clause as not only an explicit grant of power to Congress, but also an implied ban against state laws that conflict with federal law—sometimes called the "Dormant Commerce Clause."
Which case ruled that the Commerce Clause was not a proper use of Congress's Commerce Clause?
The Supreme Court’s most recent interpretation of the Commerce Clause came from the 2012 case of NFIB v. Sebelius, in which the Court upheld Congress’ power to enact the individual mandate provision of the Affordable Care Act requiring all uninsured individuals to secure health insurance or pay a tax penalty. In reaching its 5-4 decision, the Court found that while the mandate was a constitutional exercise of Congress’ power to tax, it was not a proper use of Congress's Commerce Clause or Necessary and Proper Clause powers.
When was the Commerce Clause first used?
The first legal interpretation of the scope of the Commerce Clause came in 1824, when the Supreme Court decided the case of Gibbons v. Ogden. In one of the first major expansions of the powers of the federal government, the Court ruled that Congress could use the Commerce Clause to enact laws regulating both interstate and intrastate trade.
Which case ruled that Congress could apply the Commerce Clause in regulating the practices of local businesses?
In the 1905 case of Swift and Company v. United States, the Supreme Court refined its 1824 interpretation by ruling that Congress could apply the Commerce Clause in regulating the practices of local businesses—intrastate commerce—only if those local business practices were in some way a part of a “current” or stream of commerce that also involved the movement of goods between states.
What is the history of the Commerce Clause?
2. A History of the Commerce Clause. The Commerce Clause definition states that Congress has the ability to regulate commerce between a variety of entities.
What does commerce mean in the Constitution?
In the Constitution, commerce means commercial and business activities in every form that take place between citizens who reside in different states.
What is extraterritorial commerce?
Extraterritorial commerce is commerce that takes place between citizens of two different countries. The original purpose of the Commerce Clause was to eliminate conflicts between states due to one states economic advantage because of their access to a harbor. Before the Commerce Clause was instituted, it was common for states to engage in economic ...
Why is the Constitutional definition of commerce unclear?
Because the Constitutional definition of commerce is unclear, there is no obvious division as to what types of commerce are controlled by the government and which type the states should regulate. In an 1824 court case known as Gibbons v. Ogden, the Supreme Court made an important ruling related to the Commerce Clause.
What is intrastate commerce?
This includes communications that are social in nature, including telephone calls, and people traveling between states whether it is for personal fulfillment or business. When commerce takes place within the borders of a single state, this is known as domestic commerce. This can also be called intrastate commerce.
Who can regulate commerce?
Based on this clause, Congress can regulate commerce with: Foreign countries. States in the U.S. Indian tribes. Traditionally, the commerce clause has been viewed in two ways. First, it provides Congress the authority to regulate commerce.
Which amendment states that states have the right to cite the Commerce Clause?
However, as stated in the Tenth Amendment, any powers not specifically delegated to the federal government are granted to the states. When Congress passes laws that dictate the economic activity of states and their citizens, they will usually cite the Commerce Clause.
What is the meaning of the New Deal clause?
In its original meaning, the clause functioned primarily as a constraint upon state interference in interstate commerce.
Who said that the founders conceived of commerce as trade?
Raoul Berger opines that “the Founders conceived of ‘commerce’ as ‘trade,’ the interchange of goods by one state with another.”. Grant Nelson and Robert Pushaw assert a somewhat broader view.
What is the trade of economic commodities?
The trafficking and trading of economic commodities. The trafficking and trading of economic commodities and the modes of their transportation. The trafficking and trading of any kind of commodity and the mode of its transportation. The movement of any thing or any person and its mode of transportation.
Who said the power to regulate is complete in itself?
Ogden (1824) saw the power to regulate as coextensive with the other delegated powers of Congress. He declared: “This power, like all others vested in Congress, is complete in itself, may be exercised to its utmost extent, and acknowledges no limitations, other than are prescribed in the constitution.”.
Is possession of a gun a commercial activity?
Possessing a gun is not a commercial activity , even though gun violence affects commerce. More importantly, he argued that the effects prong of the commerce power applies when the activity is a commercial activity. He insisted that the rule of substantial effects must be observed.
Does commerce grant police power?
Justice Stephen G. Breyer, for the dissent, agreed that there are limits to the commerce power—it does not grant a general federal police power. But he could not find those limits. He argued that there is a sufficient connection between guns near schools, the impact on the educational process, and the eventual connection to the nation’s economy to justify the regulation, but he could not, under his formula, put forward any activity that could not thus be reached by Congress under the Commerce Among the States Clause. Concurring with the majority, Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that, upon the proper occasion, the Court should reexamine some of its more expansionary precedents dealing with the “affects” test. Subsequent to the decision, Congress amended the law, requiring that the particular gun found in possession near to a school must be shown to have traveled in interstate commerce.
What is the dormant commerce clause?
The limitation on the authority of states to regulate in areas that impact interstate commerce is known as the dormant commerce clause. In using the dormant commerce clause to resolve conflicts between state and federal authority, the courts consider the extent to which the state law has a legitimate purpose.
Which case was the exception to the Commerce Clause?
An exception is the 1995 case, United States v. Lopez.
What is the main source of authority for the federal regulation of interstate and international commerce?
The main source of authority for the federal regulation of interstate and international commerce is the commerce clause. This clause is established in Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution. The Article grants Congress the power to “regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes.”.
How does the federal system preempt state law?
The Founding Fathers created a federal system that would, at times, “preempt” state law through the supremacy clause, outlined in Article VI of the Constitution. In other words, since the U.S. Constitution is the “supreme law of the land,” if a state law conflicts with the U.S. Constitution, the state law is declared invalid. When the federal constitutional law prevails over the state law, it is said that the state law has been preempted. Before that determination is made, the courts try to determine if Congress intended to preempt state law in enacting the particular provision in question. If the answer is “no,” then those who are asserting protections of state law may make claims under state law. If the answer is “yes,” however, federal law prevails.
What powers does the Tenth Amendment give the states?
The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution gives the states powers over areas of law not held exclusively by the federal government through the U.S. Constitution , e.g., states can make laws about how to get married, who may get married, or how to dissolve a marriage, as well as which activities are crimes and how the crimes will be punished. If the U.S. Constitution does give the federal government some power, however, then the federal government may exercise it, free from state interference. For instance, the U.S. Congress (the legislative branch of the federal government) has the power, among other things, to coin money, to create a military, to establish post offices, and to declare war. Since there is specific mention of these powers, states may not create their own currency, military, or postal service, and they may not declare war.
What is the term used to describe the powers and limits of the federal and state governments as established in the Constitution?
Constitutional law is the term used to describe the powers and limits of the federal and state governments as established in the Constitution. The political system that divides authority to govern between the state and federal governments is known as federalism, and this too is established in the Constitution.
What is the source of business law?
Federal and state constitutions are a major source of business law. The United States Constitution is the supreme law of the United States. In addition to the individual constitutions established in each state, the U.S. Constitution sets out the fundamental rules and principles by which the country and individual states are governed.
What is the Dormant Commerce Clause?
The Dormant Commerce Clause is used to prohibit state legislation that discriminates against interstate or international commerce. Courts first determine whether a state regulation discriminates on its face against interstate commerce or whether it has the purpose or effect of discriminating against interstate commerce.
Which case ruled that the Commerce Clause does not always require exclusive legislation by Congress?
However, that statement by Taney in 1847 was before the doctrine morphed in the 1851 case of Cooley v. Board of Wardens , in which Justice Benjamin R. Curtis wrote for the Court that the Commerce Clause does not always require "exclusive legislation by Congress".
Why does the dormant Commerce Clause not give states unlimited authority to favor local interests?
The "market participation exception" to the dormant Commerce Clause does not give states unlimited authority to favor local interests, because limits from other laws and Constitutional limits still apply. In United Building & Construction Trades Council v.
What is the dormant clause?
The Dormant Commerce Clause, or Negative Commerce Clause, in American constitutional law, is a legal doctrine that courts in the United States have inferred from the Commerce Clause in Article I of the US Constitution. The primary focus of the doctrine is barring state protectionism.
What did James Madison believe about the Commerce Clause?
James Madison believed that the mere existence of the Commerce Clause would bar states from imposing any duty of tonnage: " [Madison] was more and more convinced that the regulation of Commerce was in its nature indivisible and ought to be wholly under one authority.".
Which clause prohibits state taxation?
Over the years, the Supreme Court has consistently held that the language of the Commerce Clause contains a further, negative command prohibiting certain state taxation even when Congress has failed to legislate on the subject.
Which doctrine distinguishes the market participant from the privileges and immunities doctrine?
Justice Rehnquist's opinion distinguishes the market-participant doctrine from the privileges and immunities doctrine. Similarly, Congress has the power itself under the Commerce Clause to regulate and sanction states acting as "market participants", but it lacks power to legislate in ways that violate Article IV.
Overview
- The Commerce Clause refers to Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which gives Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes. Congress has often used the Commerce Clause to justify exercising legislative power over the activities of states and their citize...
"Dormant" Commerce Clause
- The “Dormant Commerce Clause" refers to the prohibition, implicit in the Commerce Clause, against states passing legislation that discriminates against or excessively burdens interstate commerce. Of particular importance here, is the prevention of protectionist state policies that favor state citizens or businesses at the expense of non-citizens conducting business within tha…
The Meaning of "Commerce"
- Origin
The meaning of the word "commerce" is a source of controversy, as the Constitution does not explicitly define the word. Some argue that it refers simply to trade or exchange, while others claim that the Framers of the Constitutionintended to describe more broadly commercial and so… - Broad Interpretation
In Gibbons v. Ogden, 22 U.S. 1 (1824), the Supreme Court held that intrastate activity could be regulated under the Commerce Clause, provided that the activity is part of a larger interstate commercial scheme. In Swift and Company v. United States, 196 U.S. 375 (1905), the Supreme …
Further Reading
- For more on the Commerce Clause, see this University of Florida Law Review article, this Virginia Law Review article, and this Stanford Law Review article.
Dormant Commerce Clause
What Is Commerce?
- Since the Constitution does not explicitly define “commerce,” the exact meaning is a source of legal debate. Some constitutional scholars contend that “commerce” refers only to trade or exchange. Others argue that it has a broader meaning, referring to all commercial and social interaction between residents of different states. These divergent interpretations create a contr…
Current Applications in Law
- In its 2005 decision in the case of Gonzales v. Raich, the Court returned to a wider interpretation of the Commerce Clause when it upheld federal laws regulating the production of marijuana in states that had legalized marijuana possession. The Supreme Court’s most recent interpretation of the Commerce Clause came from the 2012 case of NFIB v. Sebelius, in which the Court uphel…
Sources
- ”Commerce Clause“Legal Information Institute. Cornell Law School.
- “Commerce Clause Limitations on State Regulation.” University of Missouri-Kansas City
- Williams, Norman. Why Congress May Not Overrule the Dormant Commerce Clause. UCLA Law Review (2005).
- “Federal Courts Split on Constitutionality of Individual Mandate in Health Care Law.” Regulato…
- ”Commerce Clause“Legal Information Institute. Cornell Law School.
- “Commerce Clause Limitations on State Regulation.” University of Missouri-Kansas City
- Williams, Norman. Why Congress May Not Overrule the Dormant Commerce Clause. UCLA Law Review (2005).
- “Federal Courts Split on Constitutionality of Individual Mandate in Health Care Law.” Regulatory Review (2011).
