Source: https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/536/424/
Timestamp: 2018-01-19 05:35:20
Document Index: 424425548

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501', '§ 14501']

Columbus v. Ours Garage & Wrecker Service, Inc., :: 536 U.S. 424 (2002) :: Justia US Supreme Court Center
Justia › US Law › US Case Law › US Supreme Court › Volume 536 › Columbus v. Ours Garage & Wrecker Service, Inc. › Syllabus
(a) Had § 14501(c) contained no reference at all to "political subdivision[s] of a State," § 14501(c)(2)(A)'s exception for exercises of the "safety regulatory authority of a State" undoubtedly would have embraced both state and local regulation under Wisconsin Public Intervenor v. Mortier, 501 U. S. 597. It was there held that the exclusion of political subdivisions cannot be inferred from a federal law's express authorization to the "States" to take action, for such subdivisions are components of the very entity the statute empowers, and are created as convenient agencies to exercise such of the State's powers as it chooses to entrust to them, id., at 607-608. This case is a closer call than Mortier because, in contrast to § 14501(c)(2)(A)'s singularly bare reference to "[s]tate" authority, almost every other provision of § 14501 links States and their political subdivisions. Nevertheless, that does not mean that Congress intended to limit the exception to States alone, as respondents contend. Respondents rely on Russello v. United States, 464 U. S. 16, 23, in which the Court observed that, where particular language is included in one section of a federal statute but omitted from another, Congress is generally presumed to have acted intentionally and purposely. Reading § 14501(c)'s exceptions in combination and context, however, leads the Court to conclude that § 14501 does not provide the requisite "clear and manifest indication that Congress sought to supplant local authority." Mortier, 501 U. S., at 611. Section 14501(c)(2)(C) refers to the "authority of a State or a political subdivision of a State to enact or enforce" regulations in particular areas, wording which parallels that of § 14501(c)(1). Accord, § 14501(c)(3). This parallel structure does not imply, however, that § 14501(c)(2)(A)'s concise statement must be read to use the term "State" restrictively. In contrast to §§ 14501(c)(2)(C) and (c)(3), neither the safety exception, § 14501(c)(2)(A), nor the exception for the transportation of household goods, § 14501(c)(2)(B), refers to the "authority ... to enact or enforce a law, regulation, or other provision." The Russello presumption-that the presence of a phrase in one provision and its absence in another reveals Congress' design-grows weaker with each difference in the formulation of the provisions under inspection. Furthermore, the Court notes, § 14501(c)(1) preempts the power of both States and localities to "enact or enforce" rules related to the "price, route, or service of any motor carrier ... with respect to the transportation of property"; reading the term "State" in § 14501(c)(2)(A) to exclude localities would prevent those units not only from enacting such rules but also from enforcing them, even when such rules were enacted by the state legislature. Finally, resort to the Russello presumption here would yield a decision at odds with our federal system's traditional comprehension of the regulatory authority of a State. Local governmental units are cre-