Anatomy of the Federal Litigation: Challenging the Legislature's Actions in the Wake of Guinn V. Legislature

Abstract

In July 2003, the Supreme Court of Nevada issued an extraordinary writ of mandate to the Nevada Legislature, directing it to enact a bill raising taxes to support increased education spending, by a simple majority vote rather than the 2/3 vote required by the Nevada Constitution.

This article describes the federal court litigation that was filed to challenge that ruling, and explores the merits of the case, both procedurallyl and substantively. Most importantly, the article explores the meaning of the Republican Guaranty Clause of Article IV of the U.S. Constitution, and Justice O'Connor's invitation in New York v. United States to consider whether the clause might be justiciable in some circumstances.

Keywords: Nevada, Guinn v. Legislature, Republican Guaranty Clause, Due Process, Tax Authority

JEL Classification: H10,H11,H19,H20,H52,H70,H71,H72,I20,I22,K40,K41