Congress Can ’t Delegate Power It Doesn’t Already Have

The Framers of the Constitution, fearful of establishing a tyrannical government, were cautious about placing too much power in the hands of one person or assembly. They thus split federal power between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. This separation of powers also prevents the government from ridding itself of responsibility by granting too much power to other branches or entities.When Congress gives significant power to another body —whether an executive agency or an interstate compact—it is delegating authority. But congressional authority is limited to the powers listed in Article I of the Constitution, and it certainly can’t grant power that it doesn’t have.In 1986, Congress authorized the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) —an interstate compact—to take over for the federal government in managing Reagan and Dulles Airports and the Dulles Toll Road, all of which are federal assets on federal land. A group of Virginia taxpayers and toll-road users, upset that the MWAA was raising tolls to pay for an extension of the Washington Metro, filed a class action against the MWAA, arguing in part that it was exercising improperly delegated authority. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit held that Congress did not delegate authority to the MWAA and so there was no separation of powers problem. Bizarrely, it stated that the power to operate airports on federal land is not “inherently federal.”Yet, as the Supreme Court est...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs