ABSTRACT
In Wickard v. Filburn the Court upheld amendments to the 1938 Agricultural Adjustment Act that permitted Congress to limit the number of acres that could be cultivated for the production of wheat and to assess fines on those farmers who exceeded their allotted number of acres. Filburn exceeded his allotment and consequently was fined. He argued that because he grew wheat for his own family’s consumption, Congress could not properly seek to regulate that production through its powers under the Commerce Clause. The Court disagreed, finding that the scope of Congress’s authority under the Commerce Clause extends to all activities that substantially affect interstate commerce. Because the consumption of homegrown wheat could, in the aggregate, affect market prices, the Court found that Congress could properly regulate it. The Court’s decision vastly expanded the scope of congressional power under the Commerce Clause and invited Congress to legislate in areas traditionally left to the states. In this regard, it disrupted the balance of powers envisioned by the Founders and chilled the ability of states to craft solutions to local problems and issues.
