Opinion ID: 2648092
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Significant and Legitimate Public Purpose

Text: Having determined that the orders substantially impair Plaintiffs’ contracts, the burden shifts to the state to articulate “a significant and legitimate public purpose for the regulation . . . .” Toledo Area AFL-CIO Council v. Pizza, 154 F.3d 307, 323 (6th Cir. 1998). A legitimate public purpose is one that addresses an important social or general economic problem, as opposed to providing a benefit to special interests. Energy Reserves, 459 U.S. at 412. Several courts have recognized that addressing a fiscal emergency is a legitimate public purpose. See, e.g., Home Bldg. & Loan Ass’n, 290 U.S. at 444–48; Buffalo Teachers Fed’n v. Tobe, 464 F.3d 362, 369 (2d Cir. 2006). We agree. The orders implemented in this case were part of a larger plan to remedy Flint’s dire financial situation. In a 2012 letter to Michigan’s State Treasurer, which is part of the district court - 12 - No. 13-1476 Welch, et al. v. Brown, et al. record, the Emergency Manager explained that modifying the collective bargaining agreements is designed to “address the financial emergency for the benefit of the public as a whole.” The district court ultimately recognized two public purposes for the impairments made to Plaintiffs’ contracts: to avoid bankruptcy and to achieve a balanced budget. Defendants have articulated a legitimate public objective, as the record plainly reveals that Flint is in financial turmoil. Moreover, municipal action to remedy a fiscal emergency satisfies the public purpose inquiry. Buffalo Teachers Fed’n, 464 F.3d at 369.