Equal Vote America Corp. v. Pelosi

Background

The federal government shutdown lasted 35 days and ended on January 25, 2019. Equal Vote America Corp., a nonprofit corporation, and Lewis Y. Liu filed this action challenging the shutdown as unconstitutional. The defendants were Nancy Pelosi, Kevin McCarthy, Mitch McConnell, Charles Schumer, and Donald J. Trump, each sued in an official capacity identified in the caption.

The plaintiffs sought an injunction requiring the government to resume operations under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018. They also sought declarations that the defendants lacked constitutional authority to shut down the government, that existing appropriations laws had to remain in effect until new laws were enacted, and that the defendants should apologize to the public.

Motion to Dismiss

The defendants moved to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1), which allows dismissal when a federal court lacks authority to hear a case. They argued that the plaintiffs lacked standing, that the case was moot because the shutdown had ended, and that the complaint failed to state a claim for relief.

Standing requires a plaintiff to show a concrete and particular injury caused by the challenged conduct that the requested relief could remedy. The court explained that a generalized complaint about government action—one shared by the public and not causing a more direct benefit to the plaintiff—does not satisfy this requirement.

Court’s Analysis

The court focused its standing analysis on Liu. Liu alleged that the shutdown caused him to fear for his safety while using the New York City subway because of reduced Federal Bureau of Investigation funding, fear that his food was unsafe because of reduced Food and Drug Administration funding, fear of air pollution and water contamination because of reduced Environmental Protection Agency funding, and extra costs connected to the continued operation of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

The court concluded that these concerns were shared by the public generally, or at most by other New Yorkers. It also found that the alleged safety and environmental harms were conjectural and hypothetical rather than actual or imminent. The court stated that Equal Vote America Corp. had not pleaded facts showing that it suffered an injury from the shutdown. The organization therefore could not establish standing on its own, and its associational-standing theory also failed because Liu lacked standing.

Disposition

Because the plaintiffs lacked standing, the court held that it lacked subject-matter jurisdiction to adjudicate the action further. Judge Katherine Polk Failla granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss. The court did not address the defendants’ mootness arguments, and the Clerk was directed to terminate pending motions, adjourn remaining dates, and close the case.