Interstate Commerce Act of 1887
In American history, the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 refers to a federal law designed to regulate the monopolistic railroad industry. The Act required that railroads publicize shipping rates and charge no more for short hauling than for long hauling. Railroads were also prevented from practicing price discrimination against smaller markets. The Act created a federal regulatory agency, the Interstate Commerce Commission, which it charged with monitoring railroads to ensure that they complied with the new market standards. While the agency was empowered to investigate and prosecute railroads that were alleged to have violated the Act, its jurisdiction was limited to companies that operated across state lines. The judicial branch further narrowed the agency's authority -- by 1906, the U.S. Supreme Court had ruled in favor of a railroad company in fifteen out of the sixteen cases over which it presided.