This resolution was drafted by Consumer Reports volunteers and staff, and was presented and ratified on a community call.  By Volunteering below, you'll be adding your voice to this resolution, and joining us as we work together to shift power back to consumers.  

Response to Supreme Court Rulings on Chevron Deference

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Guided by: Our commitment to ensuring that safety, environmental, and public health protections are maintained to safeguard the well-being of all those living in the United States.

Recognizing, That the recent Supreme Court decision Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo dismantles a decades-old principle that helped ensure federal agencies and their experts could issue evidence-based rules to protect the public. 

Recognizing, That this dismantling, especially combined with other recent Supreme Court decisions, undermines the ability of federal agencies to protect the public, jeopardizing existing safeguards on a range of issues from consumer protections against financial scams to standards preventing contaminated foods.

Recognizing, That the decision also empowers individual judges—with their personal policy preferences—to implement the details of laws passed by Congress, instead of leaving that task to highly trained subject matter experts at federal agencies.

Recognizing, That robust consumer protections rely on federal agencies that are well-staffed, afforded institutional stability, and granted freedom from the undue influence of corporate interests.

Recognizing, That the weakening of federal agencies’ ability to do their jobs threatens to erode the trust and effectiveness of public protections, leading to potential harm and inequities.

Recognizing, Congress is not currently equipped to define and delineate every single line item that agencies must regulate, and thus some deference must be given to experts and scientists - including the ones who decide which pharmaceutical drugs are approved, which chemicals manufacturers can use, and which products are safe for infants -  to do their work.  

Whereas, the Consumer Reports community is dedicated to advocating for robust protections that maintain high standards of safety, environmental stewardship, and public health for consumers.

Whereas, federal agencies face additional challenges, including chronic underfunding and understaffing, outsized corporate influence in agency decision-making, the revolving door between agencies and corporations they regulate, and the creation of industry-backed studies/reports that influence rulemaking.

Therefore, we propose to dedicate time, capacity, and resources to educate the public on the implications of the Supreme Court decision and how, together, we can respond; 

We propose to mobilize support for strong independent federal regulatory agencies.  We believe the agencies should be fully funded and staffed with subject matter experts, free from the undue influence of corporate interests and toxic political debates.

We propose to mobilize consumer power. We will work to identify the most critical regulations that impact consumers, and organize consumers to deploy their own stories and experiences to ensure future rules represent the interests of the communities they aim to protect; 

We propose to take full advantage of the recent call for engagement that agencies are putting forward around their rulemaking agendas, to understand the levers of power available to us as a people-powered movement and to take full advantage of those levers; 

We urge Congress to pass legislation that reaffirms the ability of agencies’ experts to reasonably interpret the laws Congress has passed and issue evidence-based rules essential for public protection.

Let us know which consumer protections you are the most interested in joining the fight to protect and expand.