The U.S. Supreme Court, pictured, issued a decision on a case dealing with a legal precedent that gave federal agencies broad discretion to use their judgment to resolve any ambiguity Congress left in a federal statute. (Jane Norman/States Newsroom)
The U.S. Supreme Court, pictured, issued a decision on a case dealing with a legal precedent that gave federal agencies broad discretion to use their judgment to resolve any ambiguity Congress left in a federal statute. (Jane Norman/States Newsroom)

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a precedent July 5 that had for decades limited judicial power to strike executive branch regulations, in a decision immediately criticized for potentially undermining decisions by scientists and agency experts.