404
Opinion of Thomas, J.
invalidated an Illinois Commerce Commission order establishing rates for the city of Chicago because it failed to distinguish between the intrastate and interstate property and business of the telephone company. In so doing, the Court emphasized that "[t]he separation of the intrastate and interstate property, revenues and expenses of the Company is . . . essential to the appropriate recognition of the competent governmental authority in each field of regulation." Id., at 148.
In the Communications Act of 1934, 48 Stat. 1064, as amended, 47 U. S. C. § 151 et seq., Congress transferred authority over interstate communications from the ICC to the newly created Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission). As in the Mann-Elkins Act, Congress chose not to displace the States' authority over intrastate communications. Indeed, Congress took care to preserve it explicitly in § 2(b), which provides, in relevant part, that "nothing in this chapter shall be construed to apply or to give the Commission jurisdiction with respect to . . . charges, classifications, practices, services, facilities, or regulations for or in connection with intrastate communication service." 47 U. S. C. § 152(b). We have carefully guarded the historical jurisdictional division codified in § 2(b). See Louisiana Pub. Serv. Comm'n v. FCC, 476 U. S. 355 (1986). In Louisiana, we held that § 2(b) precluded the FCC from pre-empting state depreciation regulations. In so doing, we rejected the FCC's argument that § 220 of the Communications Act of 1934 provided it with authority to displace state regulations that were inconsistent with federal depreciation standards. We instead concluded that § 2(b) "fences off from FCC reach or regulation intrastate matters—indeed, including matters 'in connection with' intrastate service," id., at 370, and we further indicated that the FCC could breach § 2(b)'s jurisdictional "fence" only when Congress used "unambiguous or straightforward" language to give it jurisdiction over intrastate communications, id., at 377.
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