In the 1941 case of Gregg Cartage & Storage Co. et al. v. United States et al., the Supreme Court ruled on a dispute involving interstate commerce and trucking regulations. The appellants, including Gregg Cartage & Storage Company, were motor carriers operating in Illinois who contested an order by the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC). This order required them to cease certain practices that violated federal transportation laws, specifically those related to rates and charges for services rendered within commercial zones adjacent to Chicago. The ICC had determined these activities constituted interstate commerce subject to its jurisdiction under Part II of the Interstate Commerce Act. However, appellants argued their operations were intrastate in nature and thus outside ICC's authority. The Supreme Court upheld the ICC's decision stating that even if some aspects of appellant’s business could be considered local or intrastate in character; they are still part of a continuous stream of interstate commerce which is subject to regulation by Congress under its constitutional powers over such trade.

In the dissenting opinion for Gregg Cartage & Storage Co. v. United States, it was argued that the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) had overstepped its authority by regulating intrastate commerce in an attempt to control interstate rates. The dissenters believed that this action violated states' rights and exceeded the powers granted to federal agencies under the Constitution. They contended that while Congress has power over interstate commerce, it does not have unlimited authority to regulate all aspects of business within individual states just because they may indirectly affect interstate trade. Furthermore, they disagreed with majority's interpretation of 'affecting' as used in relation to commerce among several states; arguing instead for a narrower understanding where only direct effects would justify federal intervention into state affairs.