United States Telephone Association v. Federal Communications Commission
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
28 F.3d 1232 (1994)
Relevant factsFree
The FCC replaced its case-by-case fine assessment practice with a 1991 order setting standardized fine amounts by violation category, imposing heavier fines on common carriers than other licensees for identical violations, without following APA notice-and-comment procedures, arguing the order was non-binding because it had occasionally departed from it; the telephone trade association challenged this characterization after the FCC denied its reconsideration petition.
IssueFree
Whether a federal agency must follow the Administrative Procedure Act's notice and comment procedures before issuing any policy that is meant to bind the agency.