Charter

ORDER

This is a challenge to the constitutionality of the Beef Promotion and Research Act of 1985 (“the Act”), 7 U.S.C. §§ 2901-11 , and the Beef Promotion and Research Order promulgated thereunder, 7 C.F.R. §§ 1260.101-1260.640 . The district court entered judgment in favor of the United States Department of Agriculture, holding that the speech at issue is government speech and thus the Act does not violate either the appellants’ free speech or association rights. Charter v. USDA, 230 F.Supp.2d 1121 (D.Mont.2002). We heard argument and submitted the appeal for decision on March 31, 2004. When the Supreme Court granted certiorari in Johanns v. Livestock Marketing Ass’n, — U.S. -, 125 S.Ct. 2055 , — L.Ed.2d -(2005), we vacated submission pending the outcome in Johanns because the parties here challenged the Act on grounds identical to those asserted in Johanns . We now order the appeal resubmitted for decision.

In Johanns , the Supreme Court, like the district court here, first held that the speech at issue is “from beginning to end the message established by the Federal Government,” i.e., the Government’s own speech. Id. at -, 125 S.Ct. at 2061 . Further, because the beef…