In the case of Haskell v. Kansas Natural Gas Company, the Supreme Court was asked to determine whether a state could regulate and limit gas prices for private companies. The Kansas Natural Gas Company challenged an Oklahoma law that set maximum rates for natural gas sales, arguing it violated their Fourteenth Amendment rights by depriving them of property without due process of law. However, the court ruled in favor of Oklahoma, stating that states have a right to control utilities within their borders as long as they do not interfere with interstate commerce or violate constitutional protections against taking property without just compensation or due process. This decision reinforced states' power to regulate industries serving public interests within their jurisdiction.

In the dissenting opinion for Haskell v. Kansas Natural Gas Company, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., joined by Justices John Marshall Harlan and Charles Evans Hughes, argued that the state of Oklahoma had a right to regulate natural gas companies within its borders. He disagreed with the majority's interpretation of interstate commerce laws, asserting that they did not prevent states from controlling their own resources. The dissenters believed that if a resource was located entirely within one state’s boundaries, then it should be subject to regulation by that state even if it is destined for use in another state. They contended this control was necessary for preserving public welfare and preventing exploitation of resources or monopolistic practices by corporations such as Kansas Natural Gas Company.