Editing Elkins Act (section)

==Purpose==
The ICC had been unable to protect competition and fair pricing. Section 2 of the Interstate Commerce Act prohibits a carrier from offering preferential prices or rebates; however, enforcement of this section was ineffective. Powerful trusts would pay the standard shipping price, but demand a rebate from the carrier. Court cases brought before the commission generally did not result in punitive action, as the ICC was composed primarily of railroad interests.<ref>Scribner, Marc. "Slow Train Coming? Misguided Economic Regulation of U.S. Railroads, Then and Now." Competitive Enterprise Institute. 2013.</ref> Carriers found guilty of price discrimination, moreover, could appeal the ICC decision to federal courts, delaying punishment for years.<ref>Jones, Eliot. Principles of Railway Transportation (New York: Macmillan, 1924), p. 234.</ref>

The Elkins Act was named for its sponsor, Senator [[Stephen B. Elkins]] of [[West Virginia]], who introduced a bill in 1902 at the behest of the [[Pennsylvania Railroad]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/en/Learn-About-TR/TR-Encyclopedia/Capitalism-and-Labor/The-Elkins-Act.aspx |title=Elkins Act |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |website=TR Encyclopedia |publisher=Theodore Roosevelt Center, Dickinson State University |location=Dickinson, ND |access-date=2014-04-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140419221733/http://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/en/Learn-About-TR/TR-Encyclopedia/Capitalism-and-Labor/The-Elkins-Act.aspx |archive-date=2014-04-19 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The law was passed by the [[57th United States Congress|57th Congress]] and signed by President Roosevelt on February 19, 1903. The Act made it a [[misdemeanor]] for a carrier to impose preferential rebates, and implicated both the carrier and the recipient of the low price. The Act also abolished imprisonment as a punishment for breaching the law, so a violator could only be fined.<ref>Elkins Act, "An Act to Further Regulate Commerce with Foreign Nations and Among the States."  [[57th United States Congress|57th Congress]], Sess. 2, ch. 708, {{USStat|32|847}}; 1903-02-19.</ref> By reducing the severity of punishment, legislators hoped to encourage firms to testify against each other, and promote stricter enforcement of the law.<ref>Chicago, E. P. (1903 Mar 19). “The Elkins Act." ''The Washington Post'' (1877-1922).</ref>