The U.S. Supreme Court ruling that strikes down Chevron deference, which is good news for American farmers and ranchers. Chevron deference instructed courts to defer to federal agencies’ arguments about the scope of their own authority. In essence, it multiplied the power of federal agencies and undermined the principles of separation of powers.

“Farm Bureau applauds the U.S. Supreme Court for recognizing the damage Chevron deference has caused to the federal government’s balance of power," said Zippy Duvall, President, American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). "For decades, Congress has passed vague laws and left it to federal agencies and the courts to figure out how to implement them. AFBF has been a leading voice on this issue and has argued on behalf of farmers who are caught in a regulatory back and forth when administrations change the rules based on political priorities instead of relying on the legislative process. We are pleased the Court heard those concerns."

Travis Cushman, deputy general counsel for the American Farm Bureau Federation, says the most important takeaway from the case is a restored balance of power at the federal level.

"The key is that agencies will no longer be able to say how much power they have," Cushman said. "What previously happened is courts would defer to agencies for an agency's interpretation of its power, and, after this decision, courts will now be the ones to decide that. Not the agencies themselves."

Cushman says this decision sets a new legal precedent for a broad swath of government agency regulations.

"So many regulations that we believe--whether it’s USDA, EPA, Labor--push the bounds of what Congress intended, and this will force those agencies to really evaluate how much authority they have to regulate and allow us to challenge them when they've gone too far," Cushman said.

He says AFBF has been involved in this case for many years.

"In this case, we led an industry Coalition on this. We filed a brief that looked a whole lot like the Court’s final decision," Cushman said. "The court more or less did everything we said they should do for the same reasons we said they should."