Morales v. Trans World Airlines, Inc., 504 U.S. 374, 52 (1992)

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Cite as: 504 U. S. 374 (1992)

Stevens, J., dissenting

III

The Court finds in Congress' choice of the words "relating to" an intent to adopt a broad pre-emption provision, analogous to the broad ERISA pre-emption provision. See ante, at 383-384. The legislative history does not support that assumption, however. The bill proposed by the Civil Aeronautics Board provided that "[n]o State . . . shall enact any law . . . relating to rates, routes, or services in air transportation." Hearings on H. R. 8813 before the Subcommittee on Aviation of the House Committee on Public Works and Transportation, 95th Cong., 1st Sess., pt. 1, p. 200 (1977). Yet the Board's accompanying prepared testimony neither focused on the "relating to" language nor suggested that those words were intended to effect a broad scope of preemption; instead, the testimony explained that the preemption section was "added to make clear that no state or political subdivision may defeat the purposes of the bill by regulating interstate air transportation. This provision represents simply a codification of existing law and leaves unimpaired the states' authority over intrastate matters." Id., at 243.

The "relating to" language in the bill that was finally enacted by Congress came from the House bill. But the House Committee Report—like the Civil Aeronautics Board—did not describe the pre-emption provision in the broad terms adopted by the Court today; instead, the Report described the scope of the pre-emption provision more narrowly, saying that it "provid[ed] that when a carrier operates under authority granted pursuant to title IV of the Federal Aviation Act, no State may regulate that carrier's routes, rates or services." H. R. Rep. No. 95-1211, p. 16 (1978).

The pre-emption section in the Senate bill, on the other hand, did not contain the "relating to" language. That bill provided, "[n]o State shall enact any law, establish any standard determining routes, schedules, or rates, fares, or charges in tariffs of, or otherwise promulgate economic regulations

425

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