Hepburn Amendment

Like the Hepburn Amendment before it, the Holding Company Act was a legislative assault on the existing structure of private American businesses. In both cases, however, abusive and acquisitive practices by those businesses, and the resulting public outcry, overcame Congress normal aversion to dealing with the complex internal structure of American corporations. 

Section 7 of the 1938 Natural Gas Act provides for Commission licensing authority. Such licensing does not apply to the extensive oil pipeline network in the United States, under that controlling legislation (the 1906 Hepburn Amendment to the 1887 Interstate Commerce Act). We know of no such central repository of European gas pipeline... 

The FERC does not have such authority over oil pipelines under the Hepburn Amendment, a key problem in its regulation of that pipeline sector in America. 

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