Also known as:appropriated legislation · appropriating legislation
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A grant of congressional authority to enforce the substantive provisions of a constitutional amendment through legislation that remedies or prevents violations of the protected rights.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
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Port Worker Voting Access Statute
Minority dockworkers in several coastal cities complained to members of Congress that their maritime employers routinely assigned them to work shifts on election days. After investigating and finding evidence of racial disparities, Congress enacted a statute requiring employers in ports with a history of racial conflict to submit proposed election day staffing plans for federal approval. Delta Vessel, a shipping company subject to the statute, challenges its constitutionality on the ground that Congress lacked authority to regulate private employment practices.
Women Voter Registration Drive
Reports showed that women in certain districts faced barriers to registering to vote because local offices closed early and offered no weekend hours. Congress responded by requiring states to provide extended registration hours and multilingual assistance in those districts. State election officials sued, claiming the statute exceeded congressional power.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Casebooks
Hornbooks
Polling Place Closure Oversight
After reports that minority neighborhoods in Franklin systematically lost polling places, Congress created the Federal Election Monitoring Agency and required federal preclearance for closures in those neighborhoods. The Franklin State Election Commission sued, alleging lack of congressional power to regulate state election practices.
State Employee Disability Accommodation
Amelia Amari, a state employee with a disability, sued her employer after being denied reasonable accommodations. Congress had enacted legislation requiring states to provide such accommodations to prevent discrimination. The state defended on the ground that the statute exceeded enforcement authority under the Fourteenth Amendment.
Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama v. Garrett531 U.S. 356, 368 (2001)
Religious Land Use Regulation
A city denied a church's permit to expand its building, citing zoning rules. Congress had passed a statute requiring states to justify substantial burdens on religious exercise with compelling interests. The city challenged the statute as exceeding Congress's enforcement power under the Fourteenth Amendment.
City of Boerne v. Flores521 U.S. 507 (1997)
Campaign Finance Disclosure Rules
A political committee challenged federal disclosure requirements for contributions and expenditures in presidential elections. Congress had enacted the rules to prevent improper use of money to influence election results. The committee argued that the requirements exceeded congressional authority to safeguard elections.
Buckley v. Valeo424 U.S. 1, 93 (1976)
Common questions
Frequently Asked
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What standard must legislation meet to qualify as appropriate under the enforcement clauses?+
The legislation must be congruent and proportional to the constitutional violations Congress seeks to remedy or deter. Courts examine whether the statute targets actual or likely violations by state actors and whether its remedies are reasonably tailored to those violations.
Supporting sources
Does appropriate legislation allow Congress to regulate purely private conduct?+
It depends on the amendment. The Thirteenth Amendment enforcement power reaches private racial discrimination as a badge or incident of slavery. The Fourteenth Amendment enforcement power generally requires state action and does not authorize regulation of purely private conduct.
Supporting sources
Can Congress use appropriate legislation to impose preclearance requirements on some states but not others?+
Any such scheme must rest on current data and extraordinary justification. Reliance on decades-old findings without updated evidence of discrimination violates principles of equal sovereignty.
Supporting sources
Does the enforcement power require a prior judicial finding of a constitutional violation?+
No. Congress may enact prophylactic legislation designed to prevent future violations even without a prior court finding that a state has violated the Constitution.
Supporting sources
424 U.S. 1 (1976)Legislation and Regulation
…States in Burroughs v. United States , 290 U. S. 534 (1934). The Court held that it was within the power of Congress "to pass appropriate legislation to safeguard [a Presidential] election from the improper use of money to influence the result." Id. , at 545. Although the disclosure requirements were widely circumvented, no further…