Wickard v. Filburn

The Agricultural Adjustment Act limited how much wheat farmers could grow to stabilize national wheat prices. Filburn (plaintiff), a small farmer, was penalized for growing wheat beyond his quota, even though the excess was grown solely for consumption on his own farm and never entered commerce. He sued Secretary of Agriculture Wickard (defendant) to enjoin the penalty, and the lower courts agreed the regulation exceeded Congress's Commerce Clause power; Wickard appealed.

Whether Congress may regulate, under the Commerce Clause, the production of wheat grown wholly for the farmer's own consumption and never intended for sale in commerce.