Allied Van Lines, Inc. v. Interstate Commerce Commission and United States of America

HARLINGTON WOOD, Jr., Circuit Judge.

This appeal raises the apparently novel question of whether an agency’s statement that it lacks statutory jurisdiction to enforce one of its regulations against another agency is a legislative “rule” whose issuance may only follow the formal notice and comment procedures of 5 U.S.C. §§ 553(b) and (c). We hold that it is not. Alternatively, we are asked to decide that the specific jurisdictional interpretation rendered by the agency here was unreasonable; we decline to do so.

I

This case arises from the Interstate Commerce Commission’s interpretation of the…