"Supreme Court's Impact on Federal Agency Power: A Small Fish, Big Implications"

The US Supreme Court heard arguments in a case involving a government program to monitor overfishing of herring, which could limit the regulatory powers of federal agencies. The case involves two fishing companies challenging the National Marine Fisheries Service's authority to require commercial fishermen to fund the program. The conservative majority on the court expressed skepticism towards the Chevron deference doctrine, which calls for judges to defer to federal agency interpretation of ambiguous US laws. The case is part of a broader effort to weaken federal agency bureaucracy, and rulings are expected by the end of June.