Supreme Court’s Affirmative Action Ruling Likely To Affect Local Government
Posted
25 Apr 2014 in Case Notes, Commentary
The Supreme Court’s recent affirmative action ruling should be viewed through the lens of public employment not just public universities.
In Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action the Supreme Court held 6-2 that voters may by ballot prohibit affirmative action in public universities admission decisions. While this case was limited to the use of race in public university admission decisions, Michigan’s constitutional amendment also prohibits the use of racial-preference in state and local government employment and contracting. Presumably, these provisions are also constitutional. As NCSL’s Affirmative Action: State Action chart describes, a number of states prohibit the use of affirmative action in local government employment and contracting.
In 2003 in Gratz v. Bollinger and Grutter v. Bollinger,