Loose Canons: Statutory Construction and the New Nondelegation Doctrine

107 Pages Posted: 16 Aug 2002

See all articles by David M. Driesen

David M. Driesen

Syracuse University College of Law

Abstract

This article asks whether courts or administrative agencies have constitutional authority to narrowly construe statutes to save them from truly serious nondelegation claims. It explains why the Court correctly rejected administrative saving construction in American Trucking Ass'ns v. Whitman, and why the rationale supporting this rejection applies to courts as well as to agencies. This article also questions recent arguments that the nondelegation doctrine has found a new and appropriate home among canons of statutory construction. Judicial saving construction could lead to great expansion of judicial authority to make public law at the expense of the more democratic branches of government. A proper understanding of the role delegated authority plays in establishing the federal common law making authority of courts and agencies shows that grave doubt about the constitutionality of a statute under the nondelegation doctrine should create equally grave doubt about the constitutionality of administrative or judicial saving construction.

Keywords: Nondelegation, constitutional law, nondelegation, American Trucking, federal common law, separation of powers, statutory construction, avoidance canon, formalism, functionalism, environmental law

JEL Classification: H11, K23, K32, K40

Suggested Citation

Driesen, David M., Loose Canons: Statutory Construction and the New Nondelegation Doctrine. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=315640 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.315640

David M. Driesen (Contact Author)

Syracuse University College of Law ( email )

Dineen Hall
950 Irving Ave.
Syracuse, NY, NY 13244
United States
315-443-4218 (Phone)
315-443-4141 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.law.syr.edu/faculty/facultymember.asp?fac=12

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
287
Abstract Views
2,765
Rank
192,794
PlumX Metrics