The Enterprise, Inc. v. Bolger
| Decision Date | 09 October 1985 |
| Docket Number | No. 84-5704,84-5704 |
| Citation | 774 F.2d 159 |
| Parties | , 12 Media L. Rep. 1189 THE ENTERPRISE, INC., Plaintiff-Appellee, v. William F. BOLGER, Postmaster General; Janet D. Steiger, Chairman Postal Rate Commission; Postal Rate Commission; and the U.S. Postal Service, Defendants-Appellants. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit |
John W. Gill, Jr., U.S. Atty., Knoxville, Tenn., William R. Sonnenburg, William Kanter (argued), Robert V. Zener, Attorney, Appellate Civil Div., Dept. of Justice, Washington, D.C., for defendants-appellants.
Buddy D. Perry (argued), Winchester, Tenn., for plaintiff-appellee.
Floyd Abrams, Magazine Publishers Association et al., New York City, amicus curiae.
W. Terry MaGuire, American Newspaper Publishers Ass'n, Washington, D.C., amicus curiae.
Robert Saltzstein, Stephen M. Feldman, Waltz & Saltzstein, Washington, D.C., amicus curiae.
Before ENGEL, MERRITT and KENNEDY, Circuit Judges.
The United States Postal Service appeals the judgment of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee declaring that certain postal regulations which accord second-class mailing privileges only to newspapers with at least fifty percent paid subscribers violate the First and Fifth Amendments. On appeal, the appellants contend that the district court was without jurisdiction over the case and challenge the district court's holding that the postal regulations in question are unconstitutional.
The Enterprise, Inc. (Enterprise) publishes a weekly newspaper, The Enterprise, which is distributed by mail free of charge to approximately 16,000 homes and businesses in Franklin County, Tennessee and in portions of surrounding counties. Because regular rates for second-class mail are generally lower than those for third-class printed matter, Enterprise sought a second-class mailing permit. It was told informally by the local postmaster that applying for a second-class permit would be a waste of time because the newspaper is distributed free of charge. Under section 422.21 of the Domestic Mail Manual, which governs mail classifications and rates, a general publication must have a legitimate list of subscribers who have paid for or requested the publication in order to qualify for a second-class rate.
On December 12, 1983, Enterprise filed suit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, alleging that the regulations in question violate the First Amendment and deny free newspaper publishers their rights under the equal protection guarantees implicit in the Fifth Amendment. The plaintiff also charged that the regulation violated 39 U.S.C. Sec. 3623(c)(1), which requires the establishment and maintenance of a fair and equitable classification system for all mail. Named as defendants in this suit were William F. Bolger, Postmaster General of the United States Postal Service; Janet D. Steiger, Chairman of the Postal Rate Commission; the Postal Rate Commission; and the United States Postal Service (hereinafter collectively referred to as the Postal Service).
On March 21, 1984, the district judge entered judgment in favor of the plaintiff, finding the challenged regulations unconstitutional. He held that while the regulations were "content neutral," they
might well work to stifle the dissemination, through the mails, of different points of view and opinions.... In addition, the challenged regulations do appear to create two arbitrary classifications of newspapers and accord them unequal treatment. The defendants suggest absolutely nothing to indicate that the distinction between paid and unpaid subscriptions is reasonably related to a legitimate governmental objective.
The Enterprise, Inc. v. William F. Bolger, et al., 582 F.Supp. 228, 229-30 (E.D.Tenn.1984). On May 25, 1984, the district court reaffirmed its previous decision, denying defendants' request to reconsider the earlier opinion, and entered judgment in favor of the plaintiff in the amount of $77,355.63 in excess postage. This appeal followed.
On appeal, the Postal Service contends that review of a mail rate or classification decision may be sought only in a direct appeal to a United States Court of Appeals under 39 U.S.C. Sec. 3628. It argues, therefore, that the district court was without jurisdiction to hear this case. The Postal Service also asserts that the challenged regulations are constitutional under the First Amendment.
Upon consideration, the court is of the opinion that the Postal Service is correct in its contention that review of a mail rate or classification decision such as that...
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Combined Communications Corp. v. U.S. Postal Service
...regulation. We believe this argument to be without merit. The Postal Service relies on our opinion in The Enterprise, Inc. v. Bolger, 774 F.2d 159 (6th Cir.1985) (per curiam) for this position. In that case, The Enterprise, Inc., the publisher of a weekly newspaper, brought suit against the......
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Combined Communications Corp. v. US Postal Serv., 3-87-0214.
...has jurisdiction to review a decision made by the PRC or Governors under chapter 36 of the Act." Id. See also The Enterprise, Inc. v. Bolger, 774 F.2d 159, 161 (6th Cir.1985). II. Factual Background and Procedural In late 1982 or early 1983, The Tennessean and The Nashville Banner, along wi......
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Anatol Zukerman & Charles Krause Reporting, LLC v. U.S. Postal Serv.
...clarity, the Court notes that this holding makes it unnecessary for it to resolve the question taken up in The Enterprise, Inc. v. Bolger , 774 F.2d 159 (6th Cir. 1985) (per curiam)3 —that is, whether the PRC may, or must, hear all claims whose substance is cognizable under any of the provi......
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The Enterprise, Inc. v. U.S., 86-3919
...Sec. 3628 mandated that petitioner's challenge be first pursued through administrative channels. The Enterprise, Inc. v. Bolger, 774 F.2d 159, 161 (6th Cir.1985) (Enterprise I). Upon review of the legislative history of the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970, 39 U.S.C. Secs. 101-5605, we hel......