[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 197 (Thursday, November 30, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1146-E1147]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING NEIL THOMAS PROTO ON THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF UNITED STATES 
    OF AMERICA V. STUDENTS CHALLENGING REGULATORY AGENCY PROCEDURES

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                          HON. ROSA L. DeLAURO

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 30, 2023

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, fifty years ago, the Supreme Court of the 
United States decided United States of America v. Students Challenging 
Regulatory Agency Procedures (SCRAP). Issuing a groundbreaking decision 
granting standing to five law students from George Washington Law 
School to sue the United States Government under Article III of the 
Constitution to challenge a nationwide railroad freight rate increase 
approved by the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC). With a nearly 
unanimous decision written by the oft described strict 
constitutionalist, Justice Potter Stewart, SCRAP was the first full-
court consideration of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
  What is perhaps most interesting about SCRAP is that it was wholly 
taken on by law students. Professor John F. Banzhaf, to the 
consternation of traditionalists in legal education, encouraged 
students to identify problematic corporate and regulatory agency 
relationships and to engage and challenge them in practical, real terms 
on their own turf. Led by then 3rd-year law student and New Haven 
native, Neil Thomas Proto, the five law students began their journey in 
December 1971 with the filing of a petition in the ICC that sought a 
one billion dollar refund for the failure of the commission to comply 
with NEPA in approving a twenty percent rate increase that SCRAP 
claimed discriminated against the movement of recyclable materials by 
favoring the movement of raw materials.
  I have had the good fortune to know Neil Proto for many years. 
Following the successful litigation of SCRAP, Neil went on to a 
distinguished career in law. In his later years he has also taught, 
lectured and written about his experiences. In 2006, he authored To A 
High Court, Five Bold Law Students Challenge Corporate Greed and Change 
the Law in which he provides a provides a first-person account of what 
he and his classmates dared to take on. It should come as no surprise 
that some on the Court have sought to water down and at time outright 
overturn this precedent setting decision. Just this year, in 
conjunction with the 50th anniversary of this landmark decision, Neil 
has published a revised and updated anniversary edition. This new 
edition has been recently recognized as a ''Gold Winner'' by the 
Nonfiction Author's Association.
  There are some stories that are worth repeating--and repeating often. 
The story of SCRAP is one of them as it provides important lessons, not 
only for students of law but for policymakers and advocates alike. I am 
honored to have this opportunity to congratulate Neil Thomas Proto on 
this triumph and extend my very best wishes for continued success.

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