Also known as: US Officials · United States Officials · federal officials · government officials
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A category of persons who hold elected or appointed positions or employment within the legislative, executive, or judicial branches of the federal government or of a state, city, municipal, or local government. The category reaches employees of government departments and agencies as well as employees of state universities and public pension funds.
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Usha Upton, a municipal official, possessed authority to grant individualized exemptions from a foster-agency policy that barred rejection of same-sex parents. When she exercised that discretion to excuse one agency, the policy lost general applicability. The religious agency denied an exemption could therefore invoke strict scrutiny under the Free Exercise Clause.
Umar Usmani, a federal agriculture official, approved a generic promotional campaign for beef. Mandatory assessments collected from producers funded the messages. Because the speech was attributable to the government, the assessments did not violate the First Amendment rights of dissenting producers.
The definition reaches any elected or appointed official or employee of the legislative, executive, or judicial branches at the federal, state, city, municipal, or local level. It expressly includes employees of state universities and public pension funds.
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No. Whether someone qualifies as a U.S. Official is an objective status that does not change merely because the person purports to act in a personal capacity or provides services without compensation.
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