Posted May 10, 2007 by Paul S. Ryan

Challenge to Arizona Public Financing Law Dismissed by 9th Circuit

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit today announced its dismissal of Association of American Physicians & Surgeons v. Brewer—a legal challenge to several provisions of Arizona’s public financing law.  The lawsuit concerned, among other things, whether Arizona’s matching funds provision of its public financing system hinders the ability of individuals and groups to engage in protected free speech, and whether the public financing system constitutionally encourages voluntary compliance with spending limits in exchange for public campaign financing.  The trial court upheld Arizona’s public financing system, and the Campaign Legal Center filed an amicus curiae brief with the Ninth Circuit urging the court of appeals to affirm the trial court’s decision.

The Ninth Circuit today dismissed the lawsuit as moot, ruling that “federal courts lack jurisdiction to adjudicate challenges to state measures absent a showing of actual impact on the challenger.  The rule is clear, absolute, and comprehensive.  Our courts do not exist to settle abstract questions, interesting and important as they may be.”  In this case, plaintiff Association of American Physicians and Surgeons terminated its PAC, and without a PAC, the organization cannot make political expenditures in Arizona elections.  Similarly, the multiple plaintiffs who were candidates in 2002 and 2004 did not allege any intent to run for office in future elections.  The Ninth Circuit Court concluded that the absence of any intent by the plaintiffs to participate in future elections renders their complaint moot.