196
Opinion of the Court
minimum prices, out-of-state producers may not even have the option of reducing prices in order to retain market share. The Massachusetts pricing order thus will almost certainly "cause local goods to constitute a larger share, and goods with an out-of-state source to constitute a smaller share, of the total sales in the market." 12 Exxon Corp. v. Governor of Maryland, 437 U. S. 117, 126, n. 16 (1978). In fact, this effect was the motive behind the promulgation of the pricing order. This effect renders the program unconstitutional, because it, like a tariff, "neutraliz[es] advantages belonging to the place of origin." Baldwin, 294 U. S., at 527.
In some ways, the Massachusetts pricing order is most similar to the law at issue in Bacchus Imports, Ltd. v. Dias, 468 U. S. 263 (1984). Both involve a broad-based tax on a single kind of good and special provisions for in-state producas the initial purchase from the dairy farmer was made at or above the New York State-mandated price. In other words, just as the appellant here, in order to sell its product in Ohio, only has to cut its profits by reducing its sales price below the market price sufficiently to compensate the Ohio purchaser-retailer for the forgone tax credit, so also the milk wholesaler-distributor in Baldwin, in order to sell its product in New York, only had to cut its profits by increasing its purchase price above the market price sufficiently to meet the New York-prescribed premium. We viewed the New York law as 'an economic barrier against competition' that was 'equivalent to a rampart of customs duties.' Id., at 527."
12 That is not to say that the Massachusetts dairy industry may not continue to shrink and that the market share of Massachusetts dairy producers may not continue its fall. It may be the case that Massachusetts producers' costs are so high that, even with the pricing order, many of them will be unable to compete. Nevertheless, the pricing order will certainly allow more Massachusetts dairy farmers to remain in business than would have had the pricing order not been imposed. For Commerce Clause purposes, it does not matter whether the challenged regulation actually increases the market share of local producers or whether it merely mitigates a projected decline. See Bacchus Imports, Ltd. v. Dias, 468 U. S. 263, 272 (1984) ("[W]e perceive no principle of Commerce Clause jurisprudence supporting a distinction between thriving and struggling enterprises . . ."); Baldwin v. G. A. F. Seelig, Inc., 294 U. S., at 523.
Page: Index Previous 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007