In a matter of first impression, a federal court of appeals recently decided that courts in the Eleventh Circuit—which hears matters arising in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia—have jurisdiction under the Administrative Procedures Act (“APA”) over state officials.
Specifically, in Citizens for Smart Growth v. Sec. of Transportation et al., — F.3d —-, 2012 WL 360556 (11th Cir. Feb. 6, 2012), a group of citizens sought injunctive relief by challenging the actions and decisions of the Federal Highway Administration and the Florida Department of Transportation (“FDOT”) with respect to the construction of the Indian Street Bridge in Martin County, a project that received funding from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.
The suit was brought under the APA, which provides for judicial review of federal agency actions and allows federal courts to enjoin authorities of the United States government. The FDOT argued that the Eleventh Circuit lacked jurisdiction to enjoin a state official in an action based on the APA because FDOT is not a federal agency. That issue had never been decided by the Eleventh Circuit.
Other circuits have focused on whether a highway project constitutes a major federal action or whether the state and federal projects were sufficiently interrelated. While the Eleventh Circuit agreed with the FDOT that the APA does not apply to state agencies, it nevertheless found that jurisdiction over the FDOT was appropriate in light of the FDOT’s admission that the “FDOT’s substantial role is well documented in the Administrative Record” and the FDOT’s description of itself as a “party working in tandem with federal agencies.”
Notwithstanding its jurisdictional decision under the APA, the Court of Appeals went on to grant summary judgment in favor of the FDOT, finding that the FDOT did not violate the National Environmental Policy Act in connection with the bridge construction project, among other things, by incorporating local planning documents into a required environmental impact statement.
Author(s): Timothy M. Ravich
