Friday, October 4, 2024
Hawai'i Free Press

Current Articles | Archives

Thursday, December 26, 2013
Hawaii Reapportionment: State's Exclusions not Rational
By Robert Thomas @ 3:18 PM :: 5655 Views :: Office of Elections

UPDATE: Supreme Court to Confer on Hawaii Reapportionment Case January 17, 2014 

SCOTUS Brief In Hawaii Reapportionment Case: Exclusions From Population Are Not Reviewed Under "Rational Basis"

by Robert Thomas, InverseCondemnation, December 26, 2013

Here's the Brief Opposing Motion to Affirm, filed today in Kostick v. Nago, No. 13-456.

That's the appeal currently pending in the Supreme Court challenging a ruling by a three-judge U.S. District Court upholding the 2012 Hawaii Reapportionment Plan against an Equal Protection challenge. The Plaintiffs assert that the 2012 Plan's exclusion of 108,767 military, military families, and university students from Hawaii's population count falls short of Equal Protection's requirement of representational equality, and that the Plan's 44% and 21% deviations from district population equality far exceed the Supreme Court's 10% threshold for presumed unconstitutionality. Disclosure: we represent the Plaintiffs-Appellants.

The Brief in Opposition responds to the State of Hawaii's Motion to Affirm, which, in turn was responding to our Jurisdictional Statement (remember, this is an appeal, not a cert petition):

“Nothing to see here folks, move along” is the State’s central theme in its response to this appeal. In Hawaii’s view, Burns gives it the unreviewable discretion to define and apply “permanent resident” virtually any way it chooses. And 44.22% and 21.57% deviations―percentages that blow by this Court’s 10% threshold, and make the existing high-water mark of 16% look downright amateurish? Pshaw! Hawaii is just so different from the other 49 states, it posits, we won’t tolerate canoe districts, and these deviations are the best we have to do.

Belying this narrative is the fact the State believed it necessary to add to its response a platoon of heavy-hitters, even though its arguments remain essentially unchanged from those it advanced in the District Court. But beyond the Motion to Affirm’s marquee, the State adds nothing new, and avoids the two fundamental issues presented by this appeal which challenges Hawaii’s 2012 Supplemental Reapportionment Plan (2012 Plan). 

Next up: the Court will get the briefs, and then will let us know whether the District Court will be summarily affirmed, or whether the case is set for full briefing and argument. Stay tuned.

PDF: Brief Opposing Motion to Affirm, Kostick v. Nago, No. 13-456 (Dec. 26, 2013)

Links

TEXT "follow HawaiiFreePress" to 40404

Register to Vote

2aHawaii

Aloha Pregnancy Care Center

AntiPlanner

Antonio Gramsci Reading List

A Place for Women in Waipio

Ballotpedia Hawaii

Broken Trust

Build More Hawaiian Homes Working Group

Christian Homeschoolers of Hawaii

Cliff Slater's Second Opinion

DVids Hawaii

FIRE

Fix Oahu!

Frontline: The Fixers

Genetic Literacy Project

Grassroot Institute

Habele.org

Hawaii Aquarium Fish Report

Hawaii Aviation Preservation Society

Hawaii Catholic TV

Hawaii Christian Coalition

Hawaii Cigar Association

Hawaii ConCon Info

Hawaii Debt Clock

Hawaii Defense Foundation

Hawaii Family Forum

Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United

Hawaii Farmer's Daughter

Hawaii Federation of Republican Women

Hawaii History Blog

Hawaii Jihadi Trial

Hawaii Legal News

Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance

Hawaii Matters

Hawaii Military History

Hawaii's Partnership for Appropriate & Compassionate Care

Hawaii Public Charter School Network

Hawaii Rifle Association

Hawaii Shippers Council

Hawaii Together

HiFiCo

Hiram Fong Papers

Homeschool Legal Defense Hawaii

Honolulu Navy League

Honolulu Traffic

House Minority Blog

Imua TMT

Inouye-Kwock, NYT 1992

Inside the Nature Conservancy

Inverse Condemnation

July 4 in Hawaii

Land and Power in Hawaii

Lessons in Firearm Education

Lingle Years

Managed Care Matters -- Hawaii

MentalIllnessPolicy.org

Missile Defense Advocacy

MIS Veterans Hawaii

NAMI Hawaii

Natatorium.org

National Parents Org Hawaii

NFIB Hawaii News

NRA-ILA Hawaii

Obookiah

OHA Lies

Opt Out Today

Patients Rights Council Hawaii

Practical Policy Institute of Hawaii

Pritchett Cartoons

Pro-GMO Hawaii

RailRipoff.com

Rental by Owner Awareness Assn

Research Institute for Hawaii USA

Rick Hamada Show

RJ Rummel

School Choice in Hawaii

SenatorFong.com

Talking Tax

Tax Foundation of Hawaii

The Real Hanabusa

Time Out Honolulu

Trustee Akina KWO Columns

Waagey.org

West Maui Taxpayers Association

What Natalie Thinks

Whole Life Hawaii