top of page

Eleventh Circuit Reverses District Court's Injunction While Reaffirming Longstanding Statutory Interpretation Principles in Analyzing the National Voter Registration Act

Greater Birmingham Ministries v. Secretary of State for Alabama

By Caraline S. Scheufler


In Greater Birmingham Ministries v. Secretary of State for Alabama, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit addressed whether the public disclosure provision of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) covered records related to felons disqualified from voting in Alabama and if so, whether the Secretary of State (the Secretary) was required to produce the records electronically at a price limited by the Act. The court reversed the injunction granted by the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, which ordered the Secretary to produce the felon disqualification records electronically.  The Eleventh Circuit held that the Act did cover the records, but electronic production was not required because the statutory text required only that the records be made available to the public or that photocopies of the records be provided. In its decision, the court used traditional principles of statutory interpretation to establish that although electronic production would further the Act’s purpose, purpose cannot override the plain meaning of the statutory text. An electronic disclosure requirement under the NVRA would only result if Congress amended the section as it did in similar statutes.

In 1993, Congress adopted the NVRA to “increase turnout by easing voter registration barriers and to protect election integrity by maintaining accurate and current voter rolls” by requiring states to adopt standardized voter registration procedures and enacting federal requirements to further ensure accurate voter rolls.  The Act’s public disclosure provision covers all records “concerning the implementation of programs and activities conducted for the purpose of ensuring the accuracy and currency of official lists of eligible voters.”  Pursuant to the Act, states must maintain applicable records “for at least 2 years,” making them available for “public inspection and, where available, photocopying at a reasonable cost . . .



Comentários


Post: Blog2_Post
bottom of page