Opinion ID: 386976
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: the act is to be interpreted in light of its purpose

Text: 12 It cannot be disputed that § 11503(c), read in the light of § 306 of the 4-R Act and the legislative history and purpose of the Revised Interstate Commerce Act, is specific and clear in authorizing the district court to grant injunctive relief to prevent, restrain, or terminate violations of § 11503(b) of the Act. This court stated in Shadid v. Fleming, 160 F.2d 752, 753 (10th Cir. 1947), that in such a case the discretion of the trial court in issuing or withholding an injunction is to be exercised in light of the objectives of the Act. The court is to be guided by the primary objectives of the statute involved, using public interest standards rather than private litigation requirements. Hecht Co. v. Bowles, 321 U.S. 321, 64 S.Ct. 587, 88 L.Ed. 754 (1944). 13 The objectives of § 11503 are to be determined according to the purposes of § 306 of the 4-R Act, which § 11503 purports to recodify. That purpose is stated as follows: 14 ... to eliminate the longstanding burden on interstate commerce resulting from discriminatory state and local taxation of common carrier transportation property.... Substantively (this section) would amend the Interstate Commerce Act to declare unlawful, as an unreasonable and unjust discrimination against and an undue burden upon interstate commerce, a state or local tax rate, assessment, or collection upon the transportation property of a common or contract carrier at a higher level than upon property in the same taxing district. Procedurally it would provide a remedy in the Federal courts for common and contract carriers against the collection of the excessive portion of any tax based upon such unlawful assessment of rate. 15 S. Report No. 91-630, 91st Cong., 1st Sess. (1969) (emphasis supplied). 16 When the trial court weighed the damage to be suffered by the Railroads against the damage to be suffered by the State treasury, it did not exercise its discretion to grant or deny the injunction in light of the purposes of the Interstate Commerce Act. Because of this the trial court abused its discretion in denying the injunction.