Background
The Public Interest Legal Foundation requested Wisconsin’s statewide voter-registration list under the National Voter Registration Act. The Act generally requires states to make records concerning voter-list accuracy and currency available for public inspection and copying at a reasonable cost. Wisconsin, however, is statutorily exempt because it has continuously permitted same-day polling-place registration since at least August 1, 1994.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission therefore processed the request under state law, which protects voters’ birth information and imposed the statutory maximum $12,500 fee for the statewide list. The Foundation sued to invalidate Wisconsin’s federal exemption, arguing that it violated the equal-state-sovereignty principle discussed in Shelby County v. Holder and the congruence-and-proportionality requirement established in City of Boerne v. Flores. The district court rejected those theories and dismissed the case.
The Court’s Holding
The Seventh Circuit affirmed. It held that Shelby County did not undermine the National Voter Registration Act’s exemption. Unlike the Voting Rights Act provision at issue in Shelby County, which imposed special federal burdens on selected states, the exemption relieves qualifying states of federal regulation because their registration systems already align with the federal policy of facilitating voter registration. The court also emphasized that Congress enacted the Act under the Elections Clause, where federal authority over federal-election procedures is paramount and the federalism concerns underlying Shelby County are weaker.
The court likewise held that City of Boerne’s congruence-and-proportionality test was inapplicable because that test governs legislation enacted under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment, not Congress’s Elections Clause power. Although the Foundation adequately alleged Article III standing through the $12,500 charge identified in its complaint, the court expressed doubt about prudential third-party standing because the Foundation sought to invoke states’ rights against Wisconsin’s own interests. It did not resolve that issue because the claims failed on the merits.
Chief Judge Brennan concurred fully in the merits analysis but questioned whether the Foundation had Article III standing. He reasoned that the Foundation may not have been denied information, had not paid the fee, and might have obtained the requested records through Wisconsin’s procedures. He also highlighted unresolved circuit splits concerning informational and organizational standing.
Key Takeaways
- Wisconsin remains exempt from the National Voter Registration Act because it has continuously offered same-day polling-place registration since the statutory cutoff date.
- Shelby County’s equal-state-sovereignty analysis does not invalidate a provision that relieves qualifying states of federal burdens rather than imposing special burdens on them.
- City of Boerne’s congruence-and-proportionality test does not govern legislation enacted under Congress’s Elections Clause authority.
Why It Matters
The decision preserves Wisconsin’s ability to process voter-record requests under state law, including its rules governing fees and the confidentiality of birth information. It also rejects an effort to transform federalism doctrines designed to constrain federal burdens on states into a basis for imposing federal requirements on an exempt state.
The separate concurrence flags continuing uncertainty over when advocacy organizations suffer a concrete informational injury, particularly when requested information remains available through another process or the organization has not incurred the challenged expense.