How the Supreme Court's Chevron Reversal is Shifting Public Affairs

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• Companies that have spent years fighting off threats from Washington regulators and lawmakers should brace themselves: those battles are about to spill over into the courts. Two Supreme Court decisions significantly reordered the federal policymaking process. While corporate leaders mostly cheered the news, they need to reckon with the suddenly elevated role the legal system will play in shaping rules for businesses. 
• The new normal won’t just require sharper attention to the courts. The stakes for businesses will also get higher in Congress and across the executive branch. Companies that have invested in carefully executing their public affairs strategies will have to recalibrate or face the possibility of getting lapped by competitors and policymakers.
• The pair of decisions the High Court handed down stripped regulators of power they have held for decades. The first, in the Loper Bright case, reversed the so-called Chevron deference standard, by which courts gave regulators a wide berth to interpret regulations passed by Congress. 
• Lawmakers often pass laws that are light on details, handing agencies enormous power to shape them around an administration’s political and policy goals. But in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision, regulators no longer have the final say in interpreting legislation; they now can be challenged and possibly overturned by the courts. 
• The subsequent Corner Post decision effectively removed the statute of limitations that made it harder for companies to contest federal regulations. Combined, these decisions will kick off years of legal battles, legislative fights and public affairs challenges. 
• Companies should not expect that the outcome of the 2024 election will make these issues disappear. The first 100 days of the next presidential term will drive a flurry of proposed legislation in Washington, regardless of which party holds power in the White House and Congress. Though regulatory agencies no longer have a wide berth to interpret the rules, they still have plenty of power to apply them. 
• Companies navigating this landscape should be ready to wage multiple fights at once. Federal policymaking and the legal process can be a slog, but companies should not assume that time is on their side. Washington never lets an election year go to waste, and “big business” is increasingly on an island in American politics. 

To discover more about Narrative’s approach to public affairs and advocacy, please contact Ken Spain at ken@narrativedc.com.