Connerly

With the passage of Proposition 209 in 1996, California voters added section 31 to article I of the California Constitution (hereafter article I, section 31), outlawing all state discrimination or preferences based on race, gender or national origin. In 2003, the Legislature responded by enacting Government Code section 8315, 1 which attempted to graft onto article I, section 31 a definition of “racial discrimination” that excluded “special measures” taken to secure advancement for certain racial or ethnic groups. Ward Connerly, as a taxpayer and citizen of California, filed a lawsuit in December 2003 against the Governor and Attorney General (defendants), seeking two remedies: (1) a judicial declaration that section 8315 is invalid as in conflict with article I, section 31, and (2) a permanent injunction preventing defendants from implementing or enforcing section 8315.

While this lawsuit was pending, this court decided C&C Construction, Inc. v. Sacramento Municipal Utility Dist. (2004) 122 Cal.App.4th 284 [ 18 Cal.Rptr.3d 715 ] (C&C Construction), in which we held that section 8315’s definition of “discrimination” was ineffective because it conflicted with the plain…

I respectfully dissent. Although the majority concludes plaintiff did not have standing and there is no actual controversy, it provides what plaintiff seeks—that is, a published opinion holding that no part of Government Code section 8315 (section 8315) may be enforced by the state. I would reach that result in a more straightforward manner.

Voter Standing

The trial court ruled that plaintiff had standing because he is a voter and he alleged violation of his right to vote on an amendment to the California Constitution. I believe the ruling was correct.

*753 “The propriety of a private person’s judicial challenge to legislative or executive acts depends upon the fitness of the person to raise an issue (‘standing’) .... [Citations.] [¶]... [¶] ‘The fundamental aspect of standing is that it focuses on the party seeking to get his complaint before a . . . court, and not in the issues he wishes to have adjudicated.’ [Citation.] A party enjoys standing to bring his complaint into court if his stake in the resolution of that complaint assumes the proportions necessary to ensure that he will vigorously present his case. [Citation.]” (Harman v. City and County of San Francisco (1972) 7…