In Gibbons v. Ogden, states were forbidden from enacting laws that would interfere with Congress's right to regulate which area?

• A. Local zoning
• B. International trade
• C. Domestic shipping
• D. Interstate commerce

Answer: (D)

This question tests the power of Congress under the Commerce Clause to regulate trade that crosses state lines. Gibbons v. Ogden held that Congress has broad authority to regulate interstate commerce, including navigation and economic activity that moves between states, and that states cannot pass laws or grant monopolies that obstruct that federal regulation. In the case, two steamboat operators competing for control on a water route between states faced a clash between a state-granted monopoly and a federal license. The Court ruled that federal regulation of interstate commerce takes precedence, so state attempts to interfere with that regulation are invalid. That’s why the area Congress regulates—and what states may not obstruct—is interstate commerce. Local zoning, international trade, and intrastate (domestic) shipping are not the focus of this ruling in the same way; the key point is the authority over trade crossing state lines.