Standing Committee on Conservation, Recreation, & Cultural Affairs of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands v. Virgin Islands Port Authority

21 V.I. 584, 1985 V.I. LEXIS 1
CourtSupreme Court of The Virgin Islands
DecidedNovember 14, 1985
DocketCivil No. 1367/1985
StatusPublished

This text of 21 V.I. 584 (Standing Committee on Conservation, Recreation, & Cultural Affairs of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands v. Virgin Islands Port Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of The Virgin Islands primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Standing Committee on Conservation, Recreation, & Cultural Affairs of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands v. Virgin Islands Port Authority, 21 V.I. 584, 1985 V.I. LEXIS 1 (virginislands 1985).

Opinion

MEYERS, Judge

MEMORANDUM OPINION

I. FACTS

On October 18, 1985, the Plaintiff filed a motion for a temporary restraining order to enjoin the Defendants from moving the barge, Miss Opportunity, from its location at the Submarine Base. Plaintiff’s basis for the motion was that Defendants had failed to obtain the necessary permit, pursuant to 12 V.I.C. § 911, the Coastal Zone Management Act, to engage in the development, alteration or occupancy of the trust lands on which the barge is located. A temporary restraining order was issued, and the matter was heard on the merits before the Court on October 24, 1985. The Court reserved the hearing of final arguments and rendering of judgment until November 5, 1985.

In the interim, the Defendants moved the Court for dismissal on the grounds that the Plaintiff is without capacity and standing to institute this action, thereby depriving the Court of subject matter jurisdiction, and that the legal counsel of the Legislature is not authorized to represent the Plaintiff. In response to the Defendants’ motion, the Plaintiff contends that the legislators have standing to protect the effectiveness of their vote on legislation and that circumvention of their right to vote gives them the necessary standing to institute an action. Plaintiff did not, however, address the issue of its capacity to bring this action. Upon consideration of the motions and memoranda of the parties and the Rules of the Senate of the Six[586]*586teenth Legislature,1 which was submitted as an exhibit by the Defendants, the Court is persuaded that the Plaintiff is without capacity or standing to institute this action and that the case should be dismissed.

DISCUSSION

A. Standing

The doctrine of standing embraces the concept that even though a claim may be correct, the litigant advancing it is not properly situated to be entitled to its judicial determination. 13 Wright & Miller, Jurisdiction and Related Matters § 3531 (1984). The focus is on the party, not the claim itself. Id. While there is no single test or formula for determining whether a complaining party has standing to sue, the primary inquiry is whether the complaining party has suffered some injury in fact. Harrington v. Bush, 553 F.2d 190 (D.C. Cir. 1977). (Emphasis added.) In the Harrington case a member of the United States House of Representatives brought suit for a declaratory judgment that certain foreign and domestic activities of the Central Intelligence Agency were illegal, and for an injunction prohibiting the Agency from using the funding and reporting provisions of the Central Intelligence Agency Act. In holding that the Congressman lacked standing to bring the action, the court stated that he had failed to show that the illegality of the action of the Central Intelligence Agency was linked with any degree of specificity to his congressional interests. The court went on further to state that, “[sjince appellant has failed to show injury to his effectiveness as a congressman, he has no right to invoke the power of the federal judiciary.” Id. at 213.

The Court finds Harrington, supra, to be analogous to the case at bar, and while the Plaintiff has relied on that case in support of its standing argument, it appears to the Court that it goes decidedly against the Plaintiff’s argument. Similar to the plaintiff in the Harrington case, the Plaintiff here alleged illegality on the part of the Virgin Islands Port Authority (hereinafter VIPA), by their failure to apply for and obtain a permit. Plaintiff, however, has failed to show with any degree of specificity how the alleged illegal actions of the VIPA are linked to its legislative interests. In other words, [587]*587Plaintiff has failed to show injury in fact, the crucial element in establishing whether it has standing. It follows then, that if no injury in fact has been shown, the Plaintiff has no right to invoke the power of this Court.

Plaintiff has also cited the case of Kennedy v. Sampson, 511 F.2d 430 (D.C. Cir. 1974) in support of its standing argument, however; the Court finds that case to be distinguishable from the case sub judice. In Kennedy a U.S. senator sought declaratory judgment that a bill for which he had voted had become validly enacted despite a pocket veto by the President. The senator’s argument was that the pocket veto had nullified his vote and deprived him of his constitutional right to vote on an override of the presidential veto. While the court upheld the senator’s standing, its inquiry was limited to a discrete aspect of the process by which a bill becomes a law and those post-enactment events denying the bill’s status as law. There was no interpretation of a concededly valid law already in existence, such as the Coastal Zone Management Act in the instant case. Plaintiff asserts that the circumvention of the Act by the VIPA denied it its rights to vote on a required permit. Unlike Kennedy, supra, which addressed the connection between the senator’s past vote and his future vote on a specific piece of legislation, the impairment asserted by the Plaintiff involves future unspecified votes, which may or may not be triggered by the Governor’s action. In the general legislative process of ratifying or rescinding Coastal Zone Management permits, Plaintiff does not get an opportunity to vote until such permit has been approved by the Governor. Any injury from the connection between these unspecified future votes and the general legislative process is speculative and remote. In order for Plaintiff to have standing, the alleged harm must be specific and objective, Harrington v. Bush, supra. Plaintiff has failed to meet this requirement.

B. Capacity To Sue

Title 48 U.S.C. §§ 1571 to 1576, Revised Organic Act of 1954, §§ 5 through 10, established the “Legislature of the Virgin Islands,” and set out substantive and procedural rules which this Legislature is to follow. Section 6(g) specifically gives the Legislature inherent powers, which includes the power to establish legislative committees and to delegate certain powers to these committees. In compliance with this inherent power, the Sixteenth Legislature of the Virgin Islands enacted, on January 14, 1985, by Resolution 1221, Bill No. [588]*58816-00021, the Rules of the Senate (hereinafter Rules) which, among other things, established the various standing committees with their attendant powers and jurisdiction. For example, § 501 (the General Provisions) of the Rules sets out the powers of the standing committees, which includes: (1) investigating, studying, and evaluating all matters within and related to its jurisdiction, (2) holding hearings, (3) analyzing and amending bills, and (4) reporting its findings to the Legislature. As it specifically relates to the Plaintiff in the instant case, § 514 of the Rules provides that,

The jurisdiction of the Committee on Conservation, Recreation, and Cultural Affairs shall encompass and the Committee shall receive, consider, and make recommendations on all bills relating to recreation, libraries, museums, cultural activities, fish and wildlife, natural resources and environmental protection,

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Related

Yellin v. United States
374 U.S. 109 (Supreme Court, 1963)
Harrington v. Bush
553 F.2d 190 (D.C. Circuit, 1977)
Government of the Virgin Islands v. Bay Corp.
13 V.I. 287 (Virgin Islands, 1976)
Dennis v. Roebuck
20 V.I. 218 (Virgin Islands, 1983)

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21 V.I. 584, 1985 V.I. LEXIS 1, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/standing-committee-on-conservation-recreation-cultural-affairs-of-the-virginislands-1985.