holding that the General Assembly may delegate regulatory power to “responsible governmental agencies,” but not to private persons
How later courts described this case
- holding that the General Assembly may delegate regulatory power to “responsible governmental agencies,” but not to private persons
- holding unconstitutional the Pennsylvania Fair Trade Act as applied to nonsigners of price maintenance contracts
- stating that the Legislature has the exclusive responsibility to enunciate public policy
- “The vesting of a discretionary regulatory power over prices, rates or wages, in private persons violates the essential concept of a democratic society and is constitutionally invalid.”
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
Dissenting Opinion by
Mr. Justice Jones:
We are now asked to declare invalid the Fair Trade Act. The reasons assigned are economic in nature. Appeal for invalidation of this statute on such grounds should be addressed to the legislature, not this court.
I believe that the rationale of Burche Co. v. General Electric Co., 382 Pa. 370 , 115 A. 2d 361 , is sound and that Burche controls the case at bar.