December 14, 2022 — Loper Bright Enterprises is a family owned herring fishing company that operates in New England waters. Herring fishing is hard work on a small boat, and every inch of space is valuable for storing supplies, fishermen, and the catch. Nonetheless, a National Marine Fisheries Service (“NMFS”) regulation requires that herring fishing boats allow an additional person on board to serve as a monitor, tracking compliance with federal regulations. Not only does this monitor take up limited space, but the fishermen must also pay the monitor’s salary of around $700 per day. Overall, the regulation reduces fishing profits by about 20%. If fishing boats decline to carry a monitor, they are prohibited from fishing for herring.
Loper Bright and other fisheries sued to challenge this rule, arguing that the NMFS lacked statutory authority to force them to pay for these monitors. Although the statute at issue says nothing about industry funding for government monitors, the district court surprisingly held that the statute clearly authorized the rule. Loper Bright appealed, and the D.C. Circuit held that the statute was ambiguous but deferred to the agency’s interpretation under the Chevron doctrine. Loper Bright has now asked the Supreme Court to grant review of its case, and Cato—joined by the Liberty Justice Center—has filed an amicus brief supporting that petition.