Recent Development by Katherine C. Penberthy
Alleging that a five-dollar fee to obtain a handicapped parking placard violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and various federal regulations, a group of disabled plaintiffs filed a class action lawsuit in a Texas state court against the State of Texas, the Texas Department of Transportation, and the Department's executive director (Texas). Texas removed the case to the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, which determined that the Tax Injunction Act barred federal jurisdiction over the suit and remanded. The Texas state court then denied Texas's motion to dismiss on the basis of state sovereign immunity and Texas appealed to the state appellate court.
In the meantime, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held in Neinast v. Texas that the placard charge was a “fee” not a “tax” and therefore not within the scope of the Tax Injunction Act. Following that decision, Texas removed the case from the state appellate court to federal district court. Texas then moved to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, claiming state sovereign immunity under the Eleventh Amendment. The district court granted Texas's motion to dismiss and the plaintiffs appealed. On appeal, the Fifth Circuit held that by removing the suit to federal court, Texas voluntarily waived its immunity from suit in federal court. Meyers ex rel. Benzing v. Texas, 410 F.3d 236, 250 (5th Cir. 2005).
About the Author
Katherine C. Penberthy. J.D. candidate 2007, Tulane University School of Law; B.A. 2002, Georgetown University.
Citation
80 Tul. L. Rev. 2019 (2006)