Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 v. Holder
2009 United States Supreme Court case / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 v. Holder, 557 U.S. 193 (2009), was a decision of the United States Supreme Court regarding Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and in particular its requirement that proposed electoral-law changes in certain states must be approved by the federal government. In a 9–0 decision, the Court concluded that the district was eligible to apply for an exemption (bailout) from this section per Section 4(a), because the definition of "political subdivision" in Section 14(c)(2) included a district of this nature. In an 8–1 opinion, the Court declined to rule on the constitutionality of that provision, citing the principle of constitutional avoidance.
Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 v. Holder | |
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Argued April 29, 2009 Decided June 22, 2009 | |
Full case name | Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 v. Eric Holder, Attorney General |
Docket no. | 08-322 |
Citations | 557 U.S. 193 (more) 129 S. Ct. 2504; 174 L. Ed. 2d 140; 2009 U.S. LEXIS 4539; 77 U.S.L.W. 4539; 21 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 965 |
Holding | |
Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 stands, but districts should be better able to "bail out" of it per Section 4(a). | |
Court membership | |
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Case opinions | |
Majority | Roberts, joined by Stevens, Scalia, Kennedy, Souter, Ginsburg, Breyer, Alito |
Concur/dissent | Thomas |