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On Friday, June 28th, the United States Supreme Court overturned the 40-year-old legal doctrine referred to as the Chevron deference. The doctrine gave latitude to federal agencies in wide-ranging technical matters left ambiguous by Congressional legislation.

In response, Defend Our Health’s Director of Campaigns and Programs, Maya Rommwatt, stated:

“The gutting of the Chevron deference doctrine today by the Supreme Court is likely to have wide-reaching negative consequences on the health and well-being of everyone in this country. The myriad protections and services that the federal government provides society will now be at risk of lawsuits seeking to dismantle the power of agencies that protect our food, air, water, health care, and more. 
This SCOTUS has turned legal precedent and the work of its predecessors that it is supposed to build upon on its head and effectively transferred power from one branch of government to itself. Thousands of cases have rested on the Chevron deference in the last 40 years, building a bedrock of legal precedent that was swept away last week. The courts will now rule in the expected onslaught of cases that will seek to weaken protections developed by agency experts. Our courts should not be makingtechnical decisions about food safety, breathable air, and safe drinking water. That work should be left to thescientists at agencies overseeing such matters. This decision is a naked power grab and a handout to polluting industries.”