No. 22-309

City of Salinas, California v. New Harvest Christian Fellowship

Lower Court: Ninth Circuit
Docketed: 2022-09-30
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Amici (1)Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2) Experienced Counsel
Tags: circuit-split civil-rights equal-terms equal-terms-provision facial-challenge land-use-regulation religious-land-use rluipa zoning zoning-ordinance
Key Terms:
SocialSecurity JusticiabilityDoctri
Latest Conference: 2023-01-06 (distributed 2 times)
Question Presented (AI Summary)

What must a RLUIPA plaintiff show in a facial 'equal terms' challenge?

Question Presented (OCR Extract)

QUESTION PRESENTED The “equal terms” provision of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) states that “[n]o government shall impose or implement a land use regulation in a manner that treats a religious assembly or institution on less than equal terms with a nonreligious assembly or institution.” 42 U.S.C. § 2000cc(b)(1). To revitalize its downtown using well-accepted zoning criteria, the City of Salinas enacted a zoning provision, App. 63, that, on its face, bars religious and secular assemblies alike from using ground floor spaces facing Main Street. These uses are inconsistent with a pedestrian-friendly commercial environment. New Harvest Christian Fellowship brought an “equal terms” claim after the City denied a permit to use the ground floor of a multistory building for worship services. The Ninth Circuit treated the claim as a facial challenge to the text of the City’s zoning ordinance and sustained the claim without requiring New Harvest to identify similarly situated secular comparators that were treated better. In contrast, the First, Third, Fourth, and Seventh Circuits require plaintiffs to show how secular comparators are treated for all “equal terms” claims. The question here is what a RLUIPA plaintiff must show in an “equal terms” facial challenge.

Docket Entries

2023-01-09
Petition DENIED.
2022-12-07
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/6/2023.
2022-12-01
2022-11-17
Brief of respondent New Harvest Christian Fellowship in opposition filed.
2022-11-17
Brief amici curiae of International Municipal Lawyers Association and Salinas Valley Chamber of Commerce filed.
2022-11-08
Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, City of Salinas, California
2022-11-07
Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, New Harvest Christian Fellowship
2022-10-18
Response Requested. (Due November 17, 2022)
2022-10-12
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/28/2022.
2022-10-10
Waiver of right of respondent New Harvest Christian Fellowship to respond filed.
2022-09-28
2022-08-12
Application (22A125) granted by Justice Kagan extending the time to file until September 28, 2022.
2022-08-09
Application (22A125) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from August 29, 2022 to September 28, 2022, submitted to Justice Kagan.

Attorneys

City of Salinas, California
Peder K. BataldenHorvitz & Levy LLP, Petitioner
Peder K. BataldenHorvitz & Levy LLP, Petitioner
International Municipal Lawyers Association and Salinas Valley Chamber of Commerce
Daniel Scott RobertsCole Huber LLP, Amicus
Daniel Scott RobertsCole Huber LLP, Amicus
New Harvest Christian Fellowship
Kevin T. SniderPacific Justice Institute, Respondent
Kevin T. SniderPacific Justice Institute, Respondent