United States Department of Commerce, et al. v. Montana, et al. (503 U.S. 442)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided March 31, 1992 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 503 U.S. 442 · 112 S. Ct. 1415
- Decided
- March 31, 1992
- Term
- October Term 1991
- Vote
- 9–0
- Majority author
- Justice Stevens
- Issue area
- Civil Rights
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
Opinion excerpt
Justice Stevens delivered the opinion of the Court. Article I, §2, of the Constitution requires apportionment of Representatives among the several States “according to their respective Numbers.” An Act of Congress passed in 1941 provides that after each decennial census “the method known as the method of equal proportions” shall be used to determine the number of Representatives to which each State is entitled. In this case a three-judge District Court held that statute unconstitutional because it found that the method of equal proportions resulted in an unjustified deviation from the ideal of equal representation. The Government’s appeal from that holding requires us to consider the standard that governs the apportionment of Representatives among the several States. In view of the importance of the issue and its significance in this year’s congressional and Presidential elections, we noted probable jurisdiction and ordered expedited briefing and argument. 502 U. S. 1012 (1991). We now reverse. I-H The 1990 census revealed that the population of certain States, particularly California, Florida, and Texas, had increased more rapidly than the national average. The application of the method of equal proportions to the 1990 census caused 8 States to gain a total of 19 additional seats in the House of Representatives and 13 States to lose an equal number. Montana was one of those…
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