Burrus v. Vegliante

336 F.3d 82, 2003 WL 21648686
Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit·Decided July 14, 2003·No. Docket No. 02-6257·Published·Cited by 10 cases

Opinion

WINTER, Circuit Judge.

This action involves the questions of whether the 1939 Hatch Act, as amended in 1993, 5 U.S.C. §§ 7321-7326, prohibits postal workers from displaying political materials on union bulletin boards in nonpublic areas of post offices, and, if so, whether the Act is constitutional.

Various federal officials, the United States Office of Personnel Management, and the United States Postal Service (“USPS”) (collectively the “government”) appeal from Judge Hellerstein’s decision enjoining them from interfering with the American Postal Workers Union (“APWU”) display of political materials on APWU bulletin boards. See Burrus v. Vegliante, 247 F.Supp.2d 372 (S.D.N.Y.2002). Because the postings in question fall squarely within the activities proscribed by the Hatch Act at 5 U.S.C. § 7324(a) and because there is no merit in [84] the APWU’s constitutional arguments, we reverse.

BACKGROUND

The APWU represents approximately 350,000 USPS employees nationwide. Article 22 of the national collective bargaining agreement between the USPS and the APWU provides for APWU bulletin boards in nonpublic postal workplaces, as follows:

The Employer shall furnish separate bulletin boards for the exclusive use of the Union party to this Agreement, subject to the conditions stated herein, if space is available.... Only suitable notices and literature may be posted ....

According to the APWU, it has regularly used these bulletin boards to make political endorsements by separate postings or through a “News Service” that it regularly posts on the bulletin boards.

In September and October, 2000, the APWU’s Legislative Department developed and distributed a poster comparing the campaign positions and voting records of the Republican and Democratic party presidential candidates on issues of concern to the APWU and its membership. While the poster purported to present only factual information, the APWU does not seriously dispute that it was intended to generate support for Vice President Gore.1 (A representative excerpt from the poster is set out in Appendix A.) However, the evidence is that the poster was not produced in cooperation or coordination with the Democratic party or presidential campaign.

After the posters were displayed on USPS bulletin boards in some post offices, the United States Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”)2 issued an advisory opinion to the USPS stating that the posting violated the Hatch Act.3 The USPS thereafter instructed managers at all postal facilities to remove the posters and return them to APWU representatives.

On November 2, 2000, five days before the presidential election, the APWU commenced the present action, seeking declar[85] atory and injunctive relief against removal of the posters and any disciplinary actions to prevent involved employees. On November 3, 2000, the district court enjoined the USPS from ordering the removal of the posters and from disciplining the USPS employees involved in the posting.

The government appealed and moved in this court for an emergency stay of the district court’s injunction pending appeal. On November 3, 2000, we declined to grant an emergency stay and set a hearing on the stay motion for November 14, 2000. On November 8, 2000, the day after the 2000 presidential election, the government withdrew its request for a stay but informed the court that it would pursue its appeal. On December 3, 2001, a panel of this court issued a summary order dismissing as moot the government’s appeal and noting that appellate review would be available following resolution in the district court of the APWU’s request for a declaratory judgment and permanent injunction. Biller v. Vegliante, 24 Fed.Appx. 73, 74-76 (2d Cir.2001) (unpublished summary order).

Following amended pleadings and a period of discovery, the government moved, and the APWU cross-moved, for summary judgment. On October 15, 2002, the district court filed an opinion and order granting summary judgment in favor of the APWU. The district court’s opinion concluded:

I hold that the APWU is entitled to advocate the election of candidates through display of posters and like materials on designated union bulletin boards in non-public areas of post offices, so long as the display is not coordinated with or in concert with a political party or candidate, and that defendants are enjoined from interfering with the Union’s displays, and from disciplining postal employees who bring such posters and refused [sic] to remove them.

Burrus, 247 F.Supp.2d at 379.

The government again appealed, and the district court stayed its order until 4:00 p.m. on October 22, 2002. In light of the upcoming mid-term election, the government moved in this court for a continuation of the stay, and we heard oral argument on October 22, 2002. We granted the government’s motion from the bench, extending the stay of the district court’s judgment and setting an expedited briefing schedule for the government’s appeal. The appeal was fully briefed on October 28, 2002, and we thereafter issued an order continuing the stay of the district court’s injunction until further order of this court to give us time to prepare an opinion. We held that the government had demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits and that “the completion of the election will not render the action moot in light of a record demonstrating beyond peradventure that the issue is capable of repetition and yet evading review.”

For the reasons that follow, we reverse the judgment of the district court and order entry of judgment for the government.

DISCUSSION

We review de novo both the grant of the APWU’s motion for summary judgment and the denial of the government’s motion for summary judgment. Scholastic, Inc. v. Harris, 259 F.3d 73, 81 (2d Cir.2001). The material facts are undisputed.

a) The Hatch Act

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