Competitive Orders, the Final Monopoly, and the Second Most Important Invention in History
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
The Kentucky Journal of Equine, Agriculture, and Natural Resources Law
Abstract
Monopolies matter. Competition is now being introduced at a brisk pace by federal government orders and rules in the country’s last major monopoly industry, electric power. The federal government promotes greater competition in power markets When that competition is contrary to state policy that preserves utility monopolies, the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution can be used to preempt any state law contrary to federal law. However, federal courts have recently stricken some of these federal initiatives as extending beyond federal legal jurisdiction.
Independently, some states are using their separate authority over retail aspects of their monopoly utilities to forcefully resist the federal government’s move for more competition. Some states promote in-state commerce in power favoring their in-state power and industries, discriminating against out-of-state power. Whether and how the law is used to maintain monopoly or foster greater competition in power forms the analytic narrative of this article, parsing significant legal friction between state and federal regulatory law. In a bifurcated state-federal system of U.S. governance, introducing competition is not a straightforward regulatory exercise or a seemless regulatory fit. This article navigates the nature of monoply, interstate commerce, and the friction in transition to 21st century competition in power in America.
First Page
75
Last Page
135
Publication Date
2015
Recommended Citation
Steven Ferrey, Competitive Orders, the Final Monopoly, and the Second Most Important Invention in History, 8 Ky. J. of Equine, Agric. and Nat. Res. 75 (2015).
Creative Commons License
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