Jones v. City of Memphis
Jones v. City of Memphis
Opinion of the Court
ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Before the Court is Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment (D.E. # 55) filed on January 24, 2012. Plaintiff filed a Response (D.E. # 63) on February 15, 2012. Defendants filed a Reply (D.E. # 68), filed on March 5, 2012. Also before the Court is Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment (D.E. # 56), filed on January 25, 2012. Defendants filed a Response (D.E. # 67) on March 1, 2012. For the reasons set forth below, Defendants’ Motion is GRANTED and Plaintiffs Motion is DENIED.
BACKGROUND
Plaintiff initially filed his Complaint on August 24, 2010, in the Middle District of Tennessee (D.E. # 1). He also named a plethora of Defendants, but he took a non-suit and voluntarily dismissed Phil Bredesen, Governor of Tennessee; Robert Cooper, Jr., Tennessee Attorney General; David H. Lillard, Jr., Tennessee State Treasurer; Justin Wilson, Tennessee State Comptroller; Tre Hargett, Tennessee Secretary of State; Joseph Barnes, Director of Legal Services for the Tennessee General Assembly; Gwendolyn Sims Davis, Tennessee Commissioner of General Services; and A.C. Warton, Jr., Mayor of Memphis. (D.E. # 15.) Therefore, the remaining defendants were the City of Memphis and Bridgett Handy-Clay (“Handy-Clay”), Public Records Coordinator for the City of Memphis. Next, Plaintiff filed an Amended Complaint (D.E. # 25) on October 20, 2010, which added a third Defendant: Jill Madajczyk (“Madajczyk”), Senior Assistant City Attorney for Memphis. The parties then agreed that venue was improper in the Middle District of Tennessee and that proper venue lay in the Western District of Tennessee, so United States District Judge Trauger transferred the case to this Court. (D.E. # 26-29.)
Handy-Clay filed two Motions to Dismiss (D.E. # 31, 43) on November 2, 2010, and January 12, 2011, respectively. However, the parties stipulated as to the dismissal of all claims against Handy-Clay and the office of Public Records Coordinator for the City of Memphis (D.E. # 46) on March 22, 2011. Therefore, the defendants remaining in this case are the City of Memphis (“Memphis”) and Madajczyk. Defendants filed a Motion to Dismiss (D.E. # 47) on April 18, 2011, which the Court denied on February 13, 2012. (D.E. # 62.) The parties filed cross Motions for Summary Judgment on January 24 and 25, 2012, while Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss was pending.
Defendants submit that Plaintiff is not in the trade or profession of civil rights advocacy and that he is not employed by NAN. (PL’s Resp. to Defs.’ Facts, D.E. # 61, at 2.) Plaintiff admits that “his exclusive occupation is not in civil rights advocacy, [and he] further admits that he engages in civil rights advocacy.” (Id.) Plaintiff earns a living as an insurance subrogation consultant for Abercrombie Cross, but he has not lost any income due to the denial of his public records request. (Id. at 3.) Plaintiff does not allege that the denial of his public records request interferes with his work as a consultant. (Id.) Moreover, Plaintiff is not compensated for his volunteer work as a civil rights advocate. (Id.) Although Plaintiff admits that his profession and occupation is not civil rights advocacy, Plaintiff emphasizes that he engages in civil rights advocacy. (Id.) The parties do not dispute that “[t]he sole effect of the [challenged provision] is that [Plaintiff] ‘cannot complete his obligation as a NAN volunteer.’ ” (Id.)
NAN competes with other non-profit organizations such as The Urban League, but Plaintiff himself has no commercial competitors within the State of Tennessee. (Id. at 5.) Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a) imposes an economic disadvantage on NAN because the Tennessee Urban League can access bid proposals that non-citizens cannot, which puts NAN’s website at a disadvantage compared to the charitable efforts of the Tennessee Urban League. (Id.) NAN is a 503(c) non-profit corporation. (Id.)
On NAN’s behalf, Plaintiff investigated the granting of a government contract in Memphis, Tennessee. (Defs.’ Resp. to PL’s Facts, D.E. # 67-1, at 2.) The records request related to Plaintiffs need to complete a website for NAN. (PL’s Resp. to Defs.’ Facts, D.E. # 61, at 5.) On May 10, 2010, Plaintiff spoke with Handy-Clay and then emailed her the following request:
I am the Midwest Director for [NAN] and [Rev. Sharpton]. [Rev. Sharpton] has ask[ed] me to submit a public records request for the following records[: a]n email copy (pdf) of the wining bid for the following RFQ # 2957 for the State Advocacy/State Lobbying Services December 2008[sic].
(Defs.’ Resp. to PL’s Facts, D.E. # 67-1, at 3.) Handy-Clay responded to Plaintiff that same day in her official capacity as Public Records Coordinator and denied his request because Plaintiff was not a citizen of Tennessee as required by Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a)(l):
This email acknowledges receipt of your request for a copy of the winning bid for the following RFQ # 2957. Since it does not appear that you are a Tennessee resident, I must deny your request pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated Section 10-7-503, [which] states: “... open for personal inspection by any citizen of Tennessee ...”
(Id. (emphasis omitted).) Handy-Clay was acting under color of state law when she denied Plaintiffs request. (Id.) Plaintiff then contacted Madajczyk to discuss his public records request. (Id.) After a tele
As discussed on the telephone, your open records request is being denied pursuant to the provisions of Tenn.Code Ann[.] § 10-7-503, which provides [that] any “citizen of Tennessee” has the right to inspect and/or copy public records. This office denies all public record requests from any individual or entity outside of the State of Tennessee.
(Id. at 3-4.) Madajczyk acted under color of state law in her official capacity as Senior Assistant Attorney for the City of Memphis when she enforced the provisions of Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a). (Id. at 4.) Plaintiffs public records request was denied because he is not a Tennessee citizen. (Pl.’s Resp. to Defs.’ Facts, D.E. # 61, at 1.) However, Plaintiff obtained the requested records through his Tennessee attorney after he retained counsel and a lawsuit was filed. (Id.)
Plaintiff alleges that Defendants admitted that Madajczyk’s denial of Plaintiffs public records request reflects the City of Memphis’ ongoing custom, policy, and practice of enforcing the unconstitutional provisions of Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a) to deny non-Tennesseans’ requests for public records. (Defs.’ Resp. to PL’s Facts, D.E. # 67-1, at 4.) Defendants dispute this fact. They admit that the denial of Plaintiffs request for public records reflects the City of Memphis’ requirement to follow the law by denying public record requests by non-Tennesseans. (Id.) However, Defendants did not admit that the City of Memphis’ custom, policy, and practice is unlawful or that Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a) is unconstitutional. (Id. at 4-5; Defendants’ Ans., D.E. # 45, at 4-5.)
Each month, approximately ten to twenty percent of the public records requests received by the City of Memphis are from out-of-state residents. (PL’s Resp. to Defs.’ Facts, D.E. # 61, at 3-4.) The amount of time required for Madajczyk, the attorney who handles all public records requests made to the City of Memphis, to respond to the public records requests is “pretty significant.” (Id. at 4.) The volume of information requested, the amount of time, energy, and costs associated with gathering the information, and the production of the information to out-of-state requesters increases the amount of time she spends complying with public records requests. (Id.) Defendants state that, if they were required to fulfill all public records requests, the time and money required to fulfill them “would exhaust state resources, [thereby] jeopardizing the state’s ability to respond to requests from its own citizens [and] confounding the very purpose of the [Tennessee Public Records Act (“TPRA”) ].” (Id.) Plaintiff disputes this assertion because the City of Memphis can charge fees for copies of its public records. (Id.)
Defendants also submitted a Statement of Additional Facts to which Plaintiff has not responded.
Plaintiff alleges that the TPRA interferes with his fundamental right to advocate for others in the national political process. (Pl.’s Mot. for Summ. J., D.E. # 56-1, at 7.) Defendants dispute this assertion because Plaintiff did not seek public records from the City of Memphis to participate in the political process. Instead, he sought public records to create a website “to assist disadvantaged contractors and small business owners in obtaining public contracts by giving disadvantaged business owners access to ... winning contract bids.” (Defs.’ Statement, D.E. # 67-2, at 2-3.)
In his Memorandum, Plaintiff makes much of Madajczyk’s agreement with a quote by James Madison noting that “an informed constituency is at the heart of an effective democracy.” (PL’s Mot. for Summ. J., D.E. # 56-1, at 9.) Additionally, Madajczyk agreed with the assertion of Elisha Hodge, the Open Records Counsel of the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office, that “providing access to public records promotes governmental accountability by enabling citizens to keep track of what the government is up to.” (Id.) In response, Defendants note that Madajczyk later clarified that “a citizen is an individual who is a citizen of the State of Tennessee; therefore, [Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503 does] not detract from the accountability of the government ... because [non-citizens] don’t have a say in the way the State of Tennessee or the City of Memphis operates.” (Defs.’ Statement, D.E. # 67-2, at 3-4.) As a basis for Section 10-7-503’s limitation of access to public records to Tennessee citizens (“the Citizens Only Requirement”), Defendants point to Madajczyk’s statement that the time and money required to fulfill public records requests by non-Tennesseans would exhaust state resources, thereby jeopardizing the state’s ability to respond to requests from its own citizens and confounding the purpose of the TPRA. (Id. at 4.)
The Amended Complaint contains two Counts for Relief. First, Plaintiff alleges a violation of his rights under the Privileges and Immunities Clause as provided by 42 U.S.C. § 1983. (Am. Compl. at 6.) Second, Plaintiff alleges a violation of his rights under the Commerce Clause as provided by 42 U.S.C. § 1983. (Id. at 8.) Plaintiff requests declaratory relief declaring the Citizens Only Requirement unconstitutional and injunctive relief permanently enjoining the enforcement of the Citizens Only Requirement. (Id. at 9-10.) He seeks only nominal damages against Memphis, but he also seeks attorney’s fees. (Id. at 10.)
STANDARD OF REVIEW
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(a) provides that the
court shall grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.2
In reviewing a motion for summary judgment, the evidence must be viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party.
Summary judgment must be entered “against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party’s case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial.”
ANALYSIS
The Tennessee statutory provision at issue in this case provides in pertinent part that
[a]ll state, county, and municipal records shall, at all times during business hours, which for public hospitals shall be during the business hours of their administrative offices, be open for personal inspection by any citizen of this state, and those in charge of the records shall not refuse such right of inspection to any citizens unless otherwise provided by state law.10
Plaintiff does not challenge the validity of the TPRA; instead, he seeks only the severance of the offensive portions of section 10-7-503 which restrict access of public records to “citizens of Tennessee.”
Privileges and Immunities Clause
The Privileges and Immunities Clause of Article IV provides that “[t]he Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.”
A proper Privileges and Immunities Clause analysis contains three steps. First, a court determines whether the policy at issue burdens a fundamental right protected by the Privileges and Immunities Clause.
Second, if the first inquiry is satisfied, a court proceeds to consider whether the state has a “substantial reason” for the discriminatory practice.
The Supreme Court has recognized several rights as fundamental under the Privileges and Immunities Clause. Those rights include the right to practice a trade, profession or common calling,
Burdening of a Protected Right
In his Amended Complaint, Plaintiff avers that the Citizens Only Requirement infringes upon two allegedly fundamental rights: his ability to engage in his common calling as a civil rights advocate and his ability to engage in “effective advocacy and participation in the political process” because he is not able to access the information he seeks.
Common Calling
The Supreme Court has recognized the right to engage in one’s common calling as a fundamental right under the Privileges and Immunities Clause.
In their Motion, Defendants argue that Plaintiffs volunteer activities with NAN are not protected by the Privileges and Immunities Clause because they are not his livelihood.
Plaintiffs Response does not appear to address his common calling claim; instead, he focuses on his right to engage in the political process with regard to matters of national political and economic importance and his Dormant Commerce Clause claim.
Although Plaintiff does not directly address his common calling claim in his own Motion for Summary Judgment,
The Court finds that Plaintiffs common calling claim must fail. Plaintiffs profession is as an insurance subrogation consultant; he receives his income through that work. Plaintiff volunteers for NAN, and NAN does not pay him for his services. Thus, although he may be paid in the currency of good will for his work with NAN, Plaintiffs activities with NAN are not his profession or trade. Volunteer activities do not rise to the level of engagement in a profession or trade. Therefore, Plaintiff did not engage in his common calling when the Citizens Only Requirement interfered with his request for a winning contract bid from Defendants relating to the volunteer work he performed for NAN. Accordingly, he was not engaged in a fundamental right triggering the protection of the Privileges and Immunities Clause. The undisputed facts of this case do not indicate that the Citizens Only Requirement has interfered in any way with Plaintiffs paid profession as an insurance subrogation consultant. Therefore, Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment on this claim is GRANTED. To the extent Plaintiff raises a common calling claim in his Motion for Summary Judgment, that claim is DENIED.
Even if Plaintiffs volunteer activities rose to the level of a common calling, the Court finds that the Citizens Only Requirement is analogous to the Virginia provision at issue in McBumey II. As the Fourth Circuit acknowledged, “no Supreme Court case or precedent within this Circuit has ever held that a statute whose purpose and language is unrelated to engaging in a particular profession, trade, or livelihood implicates the right to a pursue one’s common calling for purposes of the Privileges and Immunities Clause.”
Engage in Effective Advocacy and Participate in the Political Process
In its Order Denying Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, the Court thoroughly discussed the Third and Fourth Circuit’s treatment of a new fundamental right under the Privileges and Immunities Clause in Lee and McBumey II.
In its Order, this Court interpreted the distinction in McBumey II as arising from the type of information sought under the state’s public records act: if the information is personal in nature, the Privileges and Immunities Clause is not triggered, but if the information sought relates to matters of “national political or economic importance” and an individual’s desire to participate in the political process regarding those matters, the Privileges and Immunities Clause would necessarily be triggered.
After reviewing these two cases, the Court interpreted the contours of this new fundamental right under the Privileges and Immunities Clause to depend upon both the type of information requested and the use to which that information will be put.
The parties have filed cross Motions for Summary Judgment on this portion of Plaintiff’s claim. In their Motion, Defendants argue that participation in the political process is not a fundamental right protected by the Privileges and Immunities Clause.
In response, Plaintiff aligns his ease with that of the plaintiff in Lee. He notes that the Lee plaintiff was engaged in effective advocacy and participation in the political process that required access to public records.
In reply, Defendants frame the issue before the Court narrowly and focus on Plaintiffs conduct: his request for a winning contract bid.
In Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment, he argues that Lee extended protection under the Privileges and Immunities Clause to non-legal political activism in the context of a journalist’s inability to engage in political advocacy regarding topics upon which the journalist’s requested information touches.
In response, Defendants state that Plaintiffs Motion “focuses on his Privileges and Immunities Clause argument and asks this Court to expand the scope of the Clause to broadly protect general civil rights advocacy. Defendants contend that such an expansion is unwarranted and would be in direct conflict with longstanding precedent interpreting the Clause, including” Lee and McBumey II.
Defendants argue that neither Lee nor McBumey II support Plaintiffs assertions. As for McBumey II, they point out that the Fourth Circuit stated that “participation in the political process is not a right ‘previously recognized by the Su
Second, Defendants argue that the factual situation presented in Lee distinguishes Lee from this case.
The Court need not decide whether the right recognized in Lee is indeed a valid fundamental right protected by the Privileges and Immunities Clause. Even if it is, the undisputed facts of this case indicate that it would not be burdened by Defendants’ denial of Plaintiffs record request. The fundamental right articulated in Lee related to a plaintiffs ability to participate in the political process with regard to matters of national political and economic importance. The Court finds that a winning contract bid for a State Advocacy/State Lobbying Services contract is not a matter of national political and economic importance, and Plaintiff has not pointed to evidence indicating that it would be. The awarding of a government contract in the City of Memphis does not rise to the level of broad national importance of the corporate and banking records requested in Lee. Unlike Delaware, Tennessee is not home to corporations with
Participation in National Civil Rights Activity
Because Plaintiffs asserted fundamental right to participate in national civil rights advocacy is similar to his asserted right to engage in the political process, the Court finds that the same law articulated above in Lee and McBumey II applies to its analysis of this asserted right. Therefore, the Court will not review the law again.
In his Motion, Plaintiff states that he sought to obtain public records to engage in civil rights advocacy, not to infiltrate Tennessee’s separate political community.
In response, Defendants contend that Plaintiffs request for public records so that he could build a website of winning contract bid proposals is not participation in the political process, and even if it was, participation in the political process is not a fundamental right protected by the Privileges and Immunities Clause: “Plaintiffs extrapolation of] the creation of a website containing winning bid proposal[s] to advocacy for others in the national political process” is tenuous and cannot be sustained.
At the outset, the Court notes that Plaintiffs Amended Complaint did not indicate that he desired to petition the national government for redress as he now asserts; rather, the undisputed evidence has demonstrated that he wanted to build a website to assist contractors in making successful bids. Furthermore, Lee’s new fundamental right was not the right to participate in national civil rights advocacy; rather, it was the right to access public information related to participation in the political process in matters of national political and economic importance. The Court will assume that national civil rights advocacy equates to participation in the
Moreover, the Court finds that the Lee’s facts further distinguish it from the case at bar. In Lee, the Plaintiff “submitfted] testimony and public comments on behalf of Inner City Press/Community on the Move to banking and other regulatory agencies” on topics related to “alleged predatory practices of banks and other financial service companies” and their regulation by state and federal authorities.
The Court does not hold that civil rights advocacy is not a matter of national political and economic importance; rather, the Court holds that Plaintiffs volunteer activities with NAN in making the website do not rise to participation in the political process regarding a matter of national political and economic importance due to the differences between corporate information in Delaware and a winning contract bid in Memphis as discussed above. Accordingly, Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED in this regard, and Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED.
Right of Access to Public Information
Courts have not recognized a right of access to information as fundamental under the Privileges and Immunities Clause. The only court to have done so is the Lee court, which did not define the right broadly:
Because political advocacy [regarding matters of national political and economic importance] is an “essential activity” which “bear[s] upon the vitality of the Nation as a single entity,” ... and because access to public records is necessary to the ability to engage in that activity, [the Third Circuit] conclude[d] that access to public records is a right protected by the Privileges and Immunities Clause.81
Furthermore, the McBumey I court noted that freedom of information statutes “did not come into existence until the middle of the twentieth century;” therefore, the right to information has not “at all times been enjoyed by the citizens of the several states,” and it is unlikely that the drafters of the Constitution contemplated the right to access information.
Moreover, in its Order Denying Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, the Court noted
In his Motion, Plaintiff avers that “the Privileges and Immunities Clause protects more than just economic interests.”
The Court is unpersuaded by Plaintiffs arguments, and declines be the first court in the country to recognize a broad right of access to public records and information. As in McBumey I and II, the TPRA was enacted in 1957, a mere fifty-five years ago, which does not indicate that access to Tennessee’s public records has been enjoyed by citizens of this country. The Court finds that broadening the right of access to public records beyond the specific delineations articulated in Lee would be inappropriate and not in keeping with the traditional boundaries placed upon fundamental rights recognized by Privileges and Immunities Clause jurisprudence. Accordingly, Plaintiffs desired “right to access information in order to assist minority” businesses and access to public records regarding non-economic information are not fundamental rights under the Privileges and Immunities Clause. Therefore, application of the Citizens Only Requirement cannot burden his records request.
Accordingly, Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED in this regard, and Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED. Because the Court has found that all of the rights asserted by Plaintiff are either not recognized as fundamental rights protected by the Privileges and Immunities Clause or are not burdened by the Citizens Only Requirement, the Court need not address the parties’ arguments regarding the substantial reasons for the Citizens Only Re
Dormant Commerce Clause
The Commerce Clause provides that Congress shall have the power “[t]o regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian tribes.”
Plaintiffs Standing
Article III of the Constitution limits the federal judicial power to “Cases” or “Controversies,” thereby entailing as an “irreducible minimum” that there be (1) an injury in fact that is actual or threatened, (2) a causal relationship between the injury and the challenged conduct, and (3) a likelihood that the injury will be redressed by a favorable decision.
In their Motion, Defendants argue that Plaintiff does not have standing to raise a Dormant Commerce Clause claim because he has not suffered an economic disadvantage caused by the Citizens Only Requirement.
In response, Plaintiff presents one statement in a footnote: “Plaintiffs interest in obtaining minority contracting information for the purposes of national civil rights and political advocacy and the resulting effect such efforts have on interstate commerce are sufficient to litigate these claims.”
The Court finds that Plaintiff has not pled an injury within the zone of interest protected by the Dormant Commerce Clause. His injury did not involve economic protectionism, nor did it result from public records’ inability to move freely across state borders. Public records are not confined to Tennessee’s borders; access to them is merely restricted to state residents. Plaintiffs conclusory statement is insufficient for the Court to find standing. Moreover, even if Plaintiff suffered an injury in that he had to hire a Tennessee attorney to circumvent the Citizens Only Requirement and ultimately obtain his requested records, such an injury is not the result of the alleged economic protectionism about which Plaintiff complains. Additionally, neither Plaintiff nor NAN suffered an economic injury as a result of the application of the Citizens Only Requirement: NAN is a non-profit organization which does not seek to benefit economically by engaging in its activities, and Plaintiff volunteered for NAN without pay. Thus, Plaintiff does not have the standing necessary to bring a Dormant Commerce Claim.
Plaintiff’s Prudential Standing
In addition to the elements of standing discussed above, prudential standing focuses on whether the plaintiffs are the proper proponents of the particular legal rights on which they base their suit.
In their Motion, Defendants contend that Plaintiffs discovery responses indicate that he is pursuing NAN’s interests.
The Court finds that Plaintiff has failed to demonstrate prudential standing. His unsupported, conclusory statement regarding the effects on interstate commerce caused by his interest in obtaining minority contracting information is insufficient to satisfy standing. Moreover, Plaintiff requested public records as part of his work with NAN, and he intended to use the information for NAN on its website. As such, the Court finds that this lawsuit turns upon NAN’s interests rather than Plaintiffs. However, Plaintiff has not demonstrated that NAN cannot litigate on its own behalf or that NAN would be hindered by bringing its own Dormant Commerce Clause claim. Therefore, he has failed to satisfy the third element of prudential standing. Accordingly, because Plaintiff lacks both the personal and prudential standing necessary to bring his Dormant Commerce Claim, Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED.
Dormant Commerce Clause Analysis
If Plaintiff had the standing necessary for his suit to proceed, the Court’s analysis would depend upon the type of burden at issue, as the Supreme Court has articulated two different tiers of tests under the Dormant Commerce Clause.
The second tier, commonly called the Pike test, is used in the absence of discrimination for the forbidden purpose.
Tier 1 Analysis
Under the first tier of analysis, once a court determines that the law at issue is indeed discriminatory against interstate commerce on its face, in its practical effect, or in its purpose, the “crucial inquiry ... must be directed to determining whether [the state law] is basically a protectionist measure or whether it can fairly be viewed as a law directed to legitimate local concerns.”
In its Order Denying Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss, the Court held that the Citizens Only Requirement is discriminatory on its face, but it does not discriminate against interstate commerce on its face.
In McBwmey II, the Fourth Circuit upheld the Virginia citizens-only requirement under a Tier 1 analysis. The court noted that “it is not enough that a statute discriminates on the basis of citizenship for it to offend [D]ormant Commerce Clause principles[; r]ather, the challenged statute must discriminate ‘against interstate commerce’ or ‘out-of-state economic interests.’ ”
In their Motion, Defendants argue that the Citizens Only Requirement is not an economic protectionist measure.
In response, Plaintiff returns to his argument that the TPRA is facially discriminatory against out of state citizens.
The Court finds that the TPRA’s Citizens Only Requirement does not discriminate against interstate commerce in its practical effect. Like the provision at issue in McBumey II, the Citizens Only Requirement has the purpose of promoting the public’s awareness of the government’s actions and ensuring government accountability by facilitating the public’s access to government records.
Furthermore, public records are not articles of interstate commerce, and the flow of interstate commerce was not burdened by the denial of Plaintiffs public records request. The Court is unpersuaded by Plaintiffs analogy to natural resource-based Dormant Commerce Clause cases. Public records do not have the potential to flow in interstate commerce as would the game obtained by hunting and fishing. And Plaintiffs use of the information in the public records resulted in competition between NAN, his chosen non-profit, and another Tennessee-based non-profit. Non-profits are, by definition, organizations which do not seek to profit from their enterprises; therefore, their actions in promulgating websites with information obtained through public records do not affect interstate commerce.
Accordingly, the Court finds that the Citizens Only Requirement does not discriminate against interstate commerce on its face, in its practical effect, or in its purpose. Therefore, a Tier 1 analysis is inapplicable. Accordingly, the Court will turn to a Tier 2 analysis.
Tier 2 Analysis
In McBumey II, the Fourth Circuit noted that the appellant did not challenge the Eastern District of Virginia’s application of a Tier 2 analysis to the Virginia FOIA provision at issue.
Here, the purpose of the TPRA is “to promote public awareness of the government’s actions and to ensure the accountability of government officials and agencies by facilitating the public’s access to governmental records.”
CONCLUSION
For the reasons set forth above, Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED, and Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
. Plaintiff did file a Motion to Strike this Statement of Additional Facts (D.E. # 69), but the Court denied that Motion on April 6, 2012. (D.E. #73.)
. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a).
. Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986).
. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).
. Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348.
. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 252, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).
. Id. at 251-52, 106 S.Ct. 2505.
. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548.
. Lord v. Saratoga Capital, Inc., 920 F.Supp. 840, 847 (W.D.Tenn. 1995) (citing Street v. J.C. Bradford & Co., 886 F.2d 1472, 1478 (6th Cir. 1989)).
. Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a)(2)(A) (emphasis added).
. (Am. Compl. ¶ 50-51.) The Court notes that Plaintiff's Amended Complaint actually requests the Court to sever the portions of Tenn.Code Ann. § 10-7-503(a) which contain the clause "citizens of Tennessee.” However, that clause is absent from section 10-7-503(a). Therefore, the Court interprets Plaintiff's request to apply to the phrase "by any citizen of this state.”
. U.S. Const, art. IV, § 2, cl. 2.
. Toomer v. Witsell, 334 U.S. 385, 395, 68 S.Ct. 1156, 92 L.Ed. 1460 (1948).
. Paul v. Virginia, 75 U.S. (8 Wall.) 168, 180, 19 L.Ed. 357 (1868).
. Hague v. CIO, 307 U.S. 496, 511, 59 S.Ct. 954, 83 L.Ed. 1423 (1939).
. Supreme Court of Va. v. Friedman, 487 U.S. 59, 64, 108 S.Ct. 2260, 101 L.Ed.2d 56 (1988).
. Baldwin v. Fish & Game Comm’n of Mont., 436 U.S. 371, 383, 98 S.Ct. 1852, 56 L.Ed.2d 354 (1978).
. Toomer, 334 U.S. at 396, 68 S.Ct. 1156.
. McBumey v. Young, 667 F.3d 454, 462 (4th Cir. 2012) (internal punctuation omitted)[hereinafter McBumey II ].
. Id.
. Id.
. Toomer, 334 U.S. at 403, 68 S.Ct. 1156.
. Canadian N. Ry. Co. v. Eggen, 252 U.S. 553, 562, 40 S.Ct. 402, 64 L.Ed. 713 (1920).
. Blake v. McClung, 172 U.S. 239, 251-52, 19 S.Ct. 165, 43 L.Ed. 432 (1898).
. Doe v. Bolton, 410 U.S. 179, 200, 93 S.Ct. 739, 35 L.Ed.2d 201 (1973).
. Baldwin v. Fish & Game Comm’n of Mont., 436 U.S. 371, 388, 98 S.Ct. 1852, 56 L.Ed.2d 354 (1978).
. (Am. Compl. ¶ 33-34.)
. See Toomer, 334 U.S. at 396, 68 S.Ct. 1156.
. See id.
. McBumey II, 667 F.3d at 463-64.
. Id. at 464 (emphasis added).
. Id. (emphasis added).
. Id. (noting that "it is clear [that] the [Virginia citizens only requirement] addresses no business, profession, or trade”).
. (Defs.' Mot., D.E. # 55-1, at 8.)
. (Id. at 9.)
. (Id.)
. (PL's Resp., D.E. # 63.)
. . (Defs.' Reply, D.E. # 68, at 5.)
. (Id. at 6.)
. (Id.)
. (See PL’s Mot., D.E. # 56-1, at 4-9.)
. (Defs.' Resp., D.E. # 67, at 11-12.)
. McBumey II, 667 F.3d at 464.
. See Jones v. City of Memphis, D.E. # 62, at 11-22; 852 F.Supp.2d 1002, 1009-16, No. 10-2776-STA-dkv, 2012 WL 465169, at *5-10 (W.D.Tenn. Feb. 13, 2012) [hereinafter Jones /]; McBurney II, 667 F.3d at 465; Lee v. Minner, 458 F.3d 194, 199 (3d Cir. 2006).
. Lee, 458 F.3d at 199.
. Id.
. See McBumey II, 667 F.3d at 465-68.
. Jones I, D.E. # 62, at 15; 852 F.Supp.2d at 1012, 2012 WL 465169, at *7.
. Id.
. Id. at 1013, 1013, at 17, *8.
. Id.
. Id.
. (Defs.’ Mot., D.E. # 55-1, at 10.)
. (Id.)
. (Id. at 11.) McBurney v. Cuccinelli, 780 F.Supp.2d 439 (E.D.Va. 2011) [hereinafter McBumey I ].
. (Pl.'s Resp., D.E. # 63, at 2.)
. (Id.)
. (Id. at 3.)
. (Defs.’ Reply, D.E. # 68, at 4.)
. (Id. at 4-7.)
. (Pl.'s Mot., D.E. # 56-1, at 6.)
. (Id.)
. (See id.)
. (Defs.’ Resp., D.E. # 67, at 2.)
. (Id. at 5.)
. {Id. at 5 n. 2.)
. {Id. ató.)
. {Id. at 6-7.)
. {Id. (citing Swift v. Campbell, 159 S.W.3d 565, 570 (Tenn.Ct.App. 2004)).)
. {Id. at 7.)
. {Id.)
. {Id. at 10.)
. {Id. at 11.)
. (Pl.’s Mot., D.E. # 56-1, at 7.) To the extent that this asserted right is separate from Plaintiff’s asserted right to engage in effective advocacy and participate in the political process addressed above, the Court will consider it separately here.
. (Defs.’ Resp., D.E. # 67, at 2.)
. (Id. at 8.)
. (Id. at 8, 10.)
. (Defs.’ Reply, D.E. # 68, at 2.)
. (Id. at 5.)
. Lee, 458 F.3d at 195.
. Lee, 458 F.3d at 200.
. McBumey I, 780 F.Supp.2d at 449.
. McBumey II, 667 F.3d at 466 (internal punctuation omitted).
. Jones I, D.E. # 62, at 15; 852 F.Supp.2d at 1012, 2012 WL 465169, at *7.
. Tenn. Att’y Gen. Op., No. 99-067, 1999 WL 238963 (Mar. 18, 1999).
. Jones I, D.E. #62, at 17-18; 852 F.Supp.2d at 1013, 2012 WL 465169, at *8.
. (Pl.’s Mot., D.E. # 56-1, at 8.)
. 470 U.S. 274, 105 S.Ct. 1272, 84 L.Ed.2d 205 (1985).
. (Pl.’s Mot., D.E. # 56-1, at 8-9.)
. (Dels.' Resp., D.E. # 67, at 8-9.)
. U.S. Const., art. I, § 8, cl. 3.
. See Dennis v. Higgins, 498 U.S. 439, 446, 111 S.Ct. 865, 112 L.Ed.2d 969 (1991).
. Dep't of Revenue of Ky. v. Davis, 553 U.S. 328, 337, 128 S.Ct. 1801, 170 L.Ed.2d 685 (2008) (emphasis added).
. U.S. Const, art. III, § 2, cl. 1; United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 751 v. Brown Grp., Inc., 517 U.S. 544, 551, 116 S.Ct. 1529, 134 L.Ed.2d 758 (1996).
. AT & T Corp. v. Rudolph, No. 06-16, 2007 WL 647564, at *8 (E.D.Ky. Feb. 27, 2007).
. Huish Detergents, Inc. v. Warren Cnty., Ky., 214 F.3d 707, 710-11 (6th Cir. 2000).
. Id. at 710 (quoting C & A Carbone, Inc. v. Town of Clarkstown, New York, 511 U.S. 383, 390, 114 S.Ct. 1677, 128 L.Ed.2d 399 (1994)).
. (Defs.’ Mot., D.E. # 55-1, at 17.)
. (Id. at 17.)
. (Id.)
. (Id. at 18.)
. (Pl.’s Resp., D.E. # 63, at 4 n. 1.)
. Singleton v. Wulff, 428 U.S. 106, 112, 96 S.Ct. 2868, 49 L.Ed.2d 826 (1976).
. Elk Grove Unified Sch. Dist. v. Newdow, 542 U.S. 1, 12, 124 S.Ct. 2301, 159 L.Ed.2d 98 (2004).
. See Duke Power Co. v. Carolina Envtl. Study Grp., Inc., 438 U.S. 59, 80, 98 S.Ct. 2620, 57 L.Ed.2d 595 (1978).
. Powers v. Ohio, 499 U.S. 400, 410-11, 111 S.Ct. 1364, 113 L.Ed.2d 411 (1991).
. (Defs.' Mot, D.E. # 55-1, at 18.)
. (Id.)
. (id.)
. The Court does not express an opinion as to whether any plaintiff working for a nonprofit organization would ever have standing under the Dormant Commerce Clause.
. See LensCrafters, Inc. v. Robinson, 403 F.3d 798, 802 (6th Cir. 2005).
. See Or. Waste Sys., Inc. v. Dep’t of Envtl. Quality of State of Or., 511 U.S. 93, 99, 114 S.Ct. 1345, 128 L.Ed.2d 13 (1994); Wyoming v. Oklahoma, 502 U.S. 437, 454-55, 112 S.Ct. 789, 117 L.Ed.2d 1 (1992).
. United Haulers Ass’n v. Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Mgmt. Auth., 550 U.S. 330, 338, 127 S.Ct. 1786, 167 L.Ed.2d 655 (2007).
. Davis, 553 U.S. at 338, 128 S.Ct. 1801.
. See Pike v. Bruce Church, Inc., 397 U.S. 137, 141-42, 90 S.Ct. 844, 25 L.Ed.2d 174 (1970).
. Id. at 142, 90 S.Ct. 844.
. See id.
. Id.
. City of Philadelphia v. New Jersey, 437 U.S. 617, 624, 98 S.Ct. 2531, 57 L.Ed.2d 475 (1978).
. Davis, 553 U.S. at 341, 128 S.Ct. 1801.
. Jones I, D.E. #62, at 26-27; 852 F.Supp.2d at 1018, 2012 WL 465169, at *12.
. Id. at 1018, at 27; at *12.
. Or. Waste Sys., 511 U.S. at 99, 114 S.Ct. 1345.
. McBumey II, 667 F.3d at 469.
. Id. (interned punctuation and citation omitted).
. Id.
. Id.
. Swift v. Campbell, 159 S.W.3d 565, 570 (Tenn.Ct.App. 2004). The parties dispute the meaning of this language, but the Court need not resolve that dispute as it does not relate to a factual issue.
. State ex rel. Wellford v. Williams, 110 Tenn. 549, 75 S.W. 948, 958-59 (1903).
. (Defs.' Mot, D.E. # 55-1, at 14.)
. {Id. at 15.)
. {Id. at 16.)
. {Id. at 16-17.)
. However, the Court has already held that the Citizens Only Requirement does not discriminate on its face against interstate commerce. Plaintiff has not presented any law or argument requiring the Court to reconsider its ruling.
. (Pl.’s Resp., D.E. # 63, at 4.)
. {Id.)
. {Id.)
. {Id. at 5.)
. {Id.)
. {Id.)
. (Defs.' Reply, D.E. # 68, at 9.)
. See Swift, 159 S.W.3d at 570.
. McBumey II, 667 F.3d at 470.
. Id.
. McBumey I, 780 F.Supp.2d at 453.
. Id. (citation omitted).
. Id.
. Swift, 159 S.W.3d at 570.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Richard JONES v. CITY OF MEMPHIS and Jill Madajczyk, Senior Assistant City Attorney for Memphis
- Cited By
- 2 cases
- Status
- Published