Cite as: 525 U. S. 366 (1999)
Opinion of Souter, J.
* * *
It would be gross understatement to say that the 1996 Act is not a model of clarity. It is in many important respects a model of ambiguity or indeed even self-contradiction. That is most unfortunate for a piece of legislation that profoundly affects a crucial segment of the economy worth tens of billions of dollars. The 1996 Act can be read to grant (bor-rowing a phrase from incumbent GTE) "most promiscuous rights" to the FCC vis-à-vis the state commissions and to competing carriers vis-à-vis the incumbents—and the Commission has chosen in some instances to read it that way. But Congress is well aware that the ambiguities it chooses to produce in a statute will be resolved by the implementing agency, see Chevron, 467 U. S., at 842-843. We can only enforce the clear limits that the 1996 Act contains, which in the present cases invalidate only Rule 319.
For the reasons stated, the July 18, 1997, judgment of the Court of Appeals, 120 F. 3d 753, is reversed in part and affirmed in part; the August 22, 1997, judgment of the Court of Appeals, 124 F. 3d 934, is reversed in part; and the cases are remanded for proceedings consistent with this opinion.
It is so ordered.
Justice OTMConnor took no part in the consideration or decision of these cases.
Justice Souter, concurring in part and dissenting in part.
I agree with the Court's holding that the Federal Communications Commission has authority to implement and interpret the disputed provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, and that deference is due to the Commission's reasonable interpretation under Chevron U. S. A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., 467 U. S. 837 (1984). I disagree with the Court's holding that the Commission was
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