Alienage and Equal Protection: A Brief Summary

 Here is the Executive Summary:

The Court treats alienage as a suspect classification and thus applies strict scrutiny to most state and local laws that discriminate on the basis of alienage. For example, in Graham v. Richardson the Court struck down welfare laws that denied benefits if the applicant was a resident alien. P. 902
    

There is, however, an exception to this rule—the political function doctrine-- which allows states to “exclude aliens from positions intimately related to the process of democratic self-government.” See Bernal at 904. Thus, the state may bar aliens from serving as police officers, probation officers, and public school teachers, because these are jobs that involve discretionary power involving a basic governmental function.  But not lawyers or notaries public.  See 2-part test at p. 905.
    

Another exception involves classifications based upon alienage under federal law. These get only rational basis review. The reason for this is set forth in the Diaz case on p. 908 – “the responsibility for regulating the relationship between the United States and our alien visitors has been committed to the political branches of the Federal Government.”  (See Art. 1, § 8 – power to establish a “Uniform Rule of Naturalization”).