Kevin Marilley v. Charlton Bonham

Procedural entryThis page is a short order in Kevin Marilley v. Charlton Bonham. Read the opinion of the Court — 844 F.3d 841
Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit·Decided December 21, 2016·No. 13-17358·Published

Opinion

FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

KEVIN MARILLEY; SALVATORE No. 13-17358 PAPETTI; SAVIOR PAPETTI, on behalf of themselves and D.C. No. similarly situated, 4:11-cv-02418-DMR Plaintiffs-Appellees,

v. OPINION

CHARLTON H. BONHAM, in his official capacity as Director of the California Department of Fish and Game, Defendant-Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California Donna M. Ryu, Magistrate Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted En Banc June 21, 2016 San Francisco, California

Filed December 21, 2016 2 MARILLEY V. BONHAM

Before: Sidney R. Thomas, Chief Judge, and Stephen Reinhardt, Kim McLane Wardlaw, William A. Fletcher, Marsha S. Berzon, Milan D. Smith, Jr., Mary H. Murguia, Jacqueline H. Nguyen, Andrew D. Hurwitz, John B. Owens, and Michelle T. Friedland, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge W. Fletcher; Dissent by Judge Milan D. Smith, Jr.; Dissent by Judge Reinhardt

SUMMARY*

Civil Rights

The en banc court reversed the district court’s summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs and remanded for the district court to enter summary judgment for California in an action brought by a class of nonresident commercial fishers challenging California’s nonresident fee differential for four commercial fishing licenses, vessel registration and permits.

The en banc court first held that California’s fee differentials for commercial fishing vessel registrations, fishing licenses, Dungeness crab permits, and herring gill net permits fell within the purview of the Privileges and Immunities Clause. The en banc court determined that whether the calculation was made at the general level of all nonresident commercial fishers, or at the specific level of nonresident commercial fishers for Dungeness crab and

* This summary constitutes no part of the opinion of the court. It has been prepared by court staff for the convenience of the reader. MARILLEY V. BONHAM 3

herring, the fee differentials charged by California were less than the amount by which California subsidized the management of the nonresidents’ portions of its commercial fishery. The en banc court therefore held that the fee differentials survived the Privileges and Immunities Clause challenge because the differentials were justified by a substantial reason that was closely related to the differential fees.

The en banc court held that the fees survived an Equal Protection Clause challenge because California’s interest in receiving compensation for its commercial fishery management provided a “rational basis” for its fee differentials.

Dissenting, Judge M. Smith, joined in full by Hurwitz and Owens and by Reinhardt and Berzon as to Part III, stated the majority assumed away the major defect in its analysis: the fact that nonresident fishermen pay multiple California taxes too, yet nonetheless commence each fishing season thousands of dollars in the hole by virtue of California’s discriminatory differentials. In Judge M. Smith’s view, the fee differentials are illegal under the Privileges and Immunities Clause.

Dissenting, Judge Reinhardt, joined by Judge Berzon, concurred in Part III of Judge M. Smith’s dissent and agreed that California failed to carry its burden of demonstrating that the differential fees it charges to nonresidents were closely drawn to the achievement of a substantial state objective. 4 MARILLEY V. BONHAM

COUNSEL

M. Elaine Meckenstock (argued) and Gary Alexander, Deputy Attorneys General; Annadel A. Almendras, Supervising Deputy Attorney General; Robert W. Byrne, Senior Assistant Attorney General; Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General; Office of the Attorney General, Oakland, California; for Defendant-Appellant.

Stuart G. Gross (argued) and Jared M. Galanis, Gross Law, San Francisco, California; Todd R. Gregorian and Tyler A. Baker, Fenwick & West LLP, Mountain View, California; for Plaintiffs-Appellees.

OPINION

W. FLETCHER, Circuit Judge:

California charges nonresident commercial fishers higher fees for vessel registrations, licenses, and permits than it charges resident commercial fishers. A certified class of nonresident commercial fishers challenges the fee differentials under the Privileges and Immunities Clause and the Equal Protection Clause. We hold that California’s fee differentials do not violate either clause.

I. Background

California requires both resident and nonresident commercial fishers to register their vessels and to purchase licenses and permits in order to engage in commercial fishing in the waters of the state. See Cal. Fish & Game Code §§ 7852, 7881 (2013). For many years, California has MARILLEY V. BONHAM 5

managed its commercial fishery at a substantial loss. See Cal. Fish & Game Code §§ 710.5(a), 710.7(a)(1) (2007). In Fiscal Year (FY) 2010–11, the year for which we have the most extensive documentation in the record, California’s Department of Fish and Game spent approximately $20 million managing its commercial fishery. In the same year, California received approximately $5.8 million in fees—including registration, license, and permit fees paid by residents and nonresidents—from participants in its commercial fishing industry. The approximately $14 million shortfall was covered by California’s general tax revenues.

California has statutorily mandated fees for commercial fishing vessel registrations, licenses, and permits. See Cal. Fish & Game Code §§ 713, 7852, 7881, 8280.6, 8550.5. Fees are adjusted annually based on inflation. Beginning in 1986, California charged nonresidents more than residents for certain commercial fishing registrations, licenses, and permits. In 1986, California for the first time charged nonresidents more than residents for herring gill net permits. In 1993, California for the first time charged nonresidents more for commercial fishing vessel registrations and commercial fishing licenses. In 1995, California for the first time charged nonresidents more for Dungeness crab permits.

In license year 2010, the fees for resident and nonresident commercial fishers were as follows:

Commercial fishing vessel registration: Resident: $317.00 Nonresident: $951.50 6 MARILLEY V. BONHAM

Commercial fishing license: Resident: $120.75 Nonresident: $361.75

Dungeness crab vessel permits: Resident: $254.00 Nonresident: $507.50

Herring gill net permits: Resident: $336.00 Nonresident: $1,269.00

Cal. Dep’t Fish & Game, Digest of California Commercial Fishing Laws and Licensing Requirements (2010). Dungeness crab and herring were (and are) limited entry fisheries for which a limited number of permits was (and is) available.

Depending on the activity in question, a commercial fisher in California could be required to pay several fees. For example, a fishing vessel owner who personally engaged in fishing for herring was required to pay a vessel registration fee, a commercial fishing license fee, and a herring gill net permit fee. For a California resident holding a single permit, the total cost in 2010 would have been $773.75. For a nonresident, the total cost would have been $2,582.25, or 3.3 times as much as for a resident. A vessel owner who personally engaged in fishing for Dungeness crab was required to pay a vessel registration fee, a commercial fishing license fee, and a Dungeness crab permit fee. For a California resident, the total cost in 2010 would have been $691.75; for a nonresident, the total cost would have been $1,820.75, or 2.6 times as much as for a resident. Of the approximately $5.8 million in fees paid to California in FY MARILLEY V. BONHAM 7

2010–11 by the commercial fishing industry, approximately $435,000 came from fee differentials paid by nonresidents.

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