Opinion ID: 467497
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Council as a Compact Agency

Text: 9 The parties and amici disagree about whether to classify the Council as a federal agency or as an interstate compact organization. See U.S. Const. art. I, Sec. 10, cl. 3 (compact clause). Those attacking the Council as unconstitutional argue that it is a federal agency, despite the congressional disclaimer that it is not a federal agency. Sec. 839b(a)(2)(A)(iv). Those who defend the constitutionality of the Council characterize it as a compact agency, outside the scope of the appointments clause. We hold that it is a compact agency and that its members are not federal officers within the meaning of the appointments clause. 10 Congress' intention is clear from both the language of the statute, Sec. 839b(b), and from the legislative history, that the Council is not to be a federal agency and is not to be controlled by the federal government. 126 Cong.Rec. 30186 (1980) (remarks of Sen. McClure). The alternative establishment of the Council as a federal agency was a rejected second choice. Sec. 839b(b). One of the principal purposes of the Council is to represent state concerns about regional problems; Congress deemed it undesirable for a federal agency to represent state concerns to yet another federal agency. 126 Cong.Rec. 30181 (1980) (remarks of Sen. McClure) (The Pacific Northwest does not need and candidly will not suffer lightly a federally imposed regional planning process with apparent input from Washington acting as a federal agency.). See also 126 Cong.Rec. 30181 (1980) (remarks of Sen. Hatfield); 126 Cong.Rec. 29808 (1980) (remarks of Rep. Dingell). Congress wanted to avoid conflicts with state law and to maintain accountability through the application of federal substantive and procedural law, see 126 Cong.Rec. 29808 (1980) (remarks of Rep. Dingell), but also wanted to avoid the potential constitutional problems of a federal agency composed of state appointees. H.R.Rep. No. 96-976 (Part II), 96th Cong., 2d Sess. 40-41 (majority views), 70-71 (supplemental views of Rep. Williams) (1980), U.S.Cong. & Admin.News (1980) pp. 5989 6038, 6039, 6063-6065; 126 Cong.Rec. 30186 (1980) (remarks of Sen. McClure). 11 The Supreme Court recently outlined some of the indicia of compacts. These are establishment of a joint organization for regulatory purposes; conditional consent by member states in which each state is not free to modify or repeal its participation unilaterally; and state enactments which require reciprocal action for their effectiveness. Northeast Bancorp, Inc. v. Board of Gov'rs of the Federal Reserve System, --- U.S. ----, 105 S.Ct. 2545, 2554, 86 L.Ed.2d 112 (1985). Even if all these indicia of compacts are present, the only interstate agreements which fall within the scope of the compact clause are those tending to the increase of political power in the states, which may encroach upon or interfere with the just supremacy of the United States. Cuyler v. Adams, 449 U.S. 433, 440, 101 S.Ct. 703, 707, 66 L.Ed.2d 641 (1981). The relevant inquiry must be one of impact on [the] federal structure. United States Steel Corporation v. Multistate Tax Commission, 434 U.S. 452, 471, 98 S.Ct. 799, 811, 54 L.Ed.2d 682 (1978); see Virginia v. Tennessee, 148 U.S. 503, 13 S.Ct. 728, 37 L.Ed. 537 (1893). If the joint activity does not affect the federal sphere, no approval by Congress is needed. If it affects the federal sphere, then Congress must authorize the activity. Cuyler v. Adams, 449 U.S. at 440, 101 S.Ct. at 707. 12 The Council satisfies all these indicia. The Council is an operational body established by reciprocal legislation whose effectiveness is conditioned upon binding legislative commitments by the states. 13 Petitioners and amicus Pacific Legal Foundation argue that certain features of the Council are unusual and that this unusual nature militates in favor of considering the Council to be a federal rather than a compact agency. The two aspects of the Council that petitioners and amicus claim are unusual are, first, that congressional approval of the Council was accorded before the states agreed to form it, and, second, that the Council's activities directly affect a federal agency. 14 An unusual feature of a compact does not make it invalid. A leading article by Professors Frankfurter and Landis sets the tone for the modern use of compacts. It encourages new uses. The combined legislative powers of Congress and of the several States permit a wide range of permutations and combinations for governmental action.... Political energy has been expended on sterile controversy over supposedly exclusive alternatives instead of utilized for fashioning new instruments adapted to new situations. Frankfurter & Landis, The Compact Clause of the Constitution--A Study in Interstate Adjustments, 34 Yale L.J. 685, 688 (1925). 15 Moreover, the two features of the Council emphasized by petitioners and amicus are not unusual. Courts have considered both. Congress may consent to an interstate compact by authorizing joint state action in advance or by giving expressed or implied approval to an agreement the States have already joined. Cuyler, 449 U.S. at 441, 101 S.Ct. at 708. See, e.g., Flood Control Act of 1936, 49 Stat. 1570 (1936), 33 U.S.C. Sec. 701d (1982); Crime Control Consent Act of 1934, 48 Stat. 909 (1934), 4 U.S.C. Sec. 112(a) (1982). Congress also may grant its consent conditional upon the states' compliance with specified terms. Cuyler, 449 U.S. at 439-40, 101 S.Ct. at 707-08. See James v. Dravo Contracting Co., 302 U.S. 134, 148 58 S.Ct. 208, 215, 82 L.Ed. 155 (1937). 16 It is also not unusual for the federal government to be involved in or to be directly affected by compact-created agencies. See, e.g., Washington Metropolitan Transit Regulation Compact, 74 Stat. 1031 (1960); Interstate Compact on the Potomac River Basin, 54 Stat. 748 (1940); Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Compact, 54 Stat. 752 (1940); Upper Colorado River Basin Compact, 63 Stat. 31 (1949). Cf. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority v. One Parcel of Land, 706 F.2d 1312, 1316 (4th Cir.), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 893, 104 S.Ct. 238, 78 L.Ed.2d 229 (1983) (federal government delegates powers to a compact organization). The federal government has even participated as a member of interstate compact agencies. See, e.g., Delaware River Basin Compact, Pub.L. No. 87-328, 75 Stat. 688 (1961). 17 There is no bar against federal agencies following policies set by nonfederal agencies. The federal government has in fact agreed to be bound by state law in several areas. See California v. United States, 438 U.S. 645, 656-57, 98 S.Ct. 2985, 2991-92, 57 L.Ed.2d 1018 (1978) (federal reclamation projects must follow state water laws); Hancock v. Train, 426 U.S. 167, 178-80, 96 S.Ct. 2006, 2012-13, 48 L.Ed.2d 555 (1976) (federal government must comply with state air pollution standards); see also Columbia Basin Land Protection Association v. Schlesinger, 643 F.2d 585, 604-06 (9th Cir.1981) (federal government must comply with state environmental standards); California v. EPA, 511 F.2d 963, 968-69 (9th Cir.1975) (federal agencies must comply with state water pollution standards), rev'd on other grounds, 426 U.S. 200, 211-13, 96 S.Ct. 2022, 2027-29, 48 L.Ed.2d 578 (1976). The federal government can be subject to state law where there is a clear congressional mandate and specific legislation which makes the authorization of state control clear and unambiguous. Hancock, 426 U.S. at 179, 96 S.Ct. at 2012.