Becerra v. Northern Arapaho Tribe
Consolidated with:
| Docket No. | Op. Below | Argument | Opinion | Vote | Author | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23-253 | 10th Cir. |
Mar 25, 2024 |
Jun 6, 2024 | 5-4 | Roberts | OT 2023 |
Holding: The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act requires the Indian Health Service to pay the contract support costs that a tribe incurs when it collects and spends program income — i.e., revenue from third-party payers like Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurers — to further the functions, services, activities, and programs transferred to it from IHS in a self-determination contract.
Judgment: Affirmed, 5-4, in an opinion by Chief Justice Roberts on June 6, 2024. Justice Kavanaugh filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justices Thomas, Alito, and Barrett joined.
SCOTUSblog Coverage
- Supreme Court rules U.S. must pay more for Native American tribes’ health care (Amy Howe, June 6, 2024)
- Court schedules abortion pill case for March argument session (Amy Howe, January 29, 2024)
- Justices take up Native health care funding cases and a dispute over sentencing guide (Amy Howe, November 20, 2023)
- Funding for Native healthcare programs, and the Armed Career Criminal Act returns (John Elwood, November 15, 2023)
- Tribal self-governance at center of dispute over federal health care costs (Kalvis Golde, November 3, 2023)
| Date | Proceedings and Orders |
|---|---|
| Aug 21 2023 | Application (23A156) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from August 31, 2023 to September 20, 2023, submitted to Justice Gorsuch. |
| Aug 21 2023 | Application (23A156) granted by Justice Gorsuch extending the time to file until September 20, 2023. |
| Sep 15 2023 | Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due October 16, 2023) |
| Oct 11 2023 | Brief of Northern Arapaho Tribe filed. |
| Oct 20 2023 | Waiver of the 14-day waiting period for the distribution of the petition pursuant to Rule 15.5 filed by petitioners. |
| Oct 24 2023 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 11/9/2023. |
| Oct 24 2023 | Reply of petitioners Xavier Becerra, Secretary of Health and Human Services, et al. filed. (Distributed) |
| Nov 13 2023 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 11/17/2023. |
| Nov 20 2023 | Petition GRANTED. The petition for a writ of certiorari in No. 23-250 is granted. The cases are consolidated, and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument. |
| Nov 20 2023 | Because the Court has consolidated these cases for briefing and oral argument, future filings and activity in the cases will now be reflected on the docket of No. 23-250. Subsequent filings in these cases must therefore be submitted through the electronic filing system in No. 23-250. Each document submitted in connection with one or more of these cases must include on its cover the case number and caption for each case in which the filing is intended to be submitted. Where a filing is submitted in fewer than all of the cases, the docket entry will reflect the case number(s) in which the filing is submitted; a document filed in all of the consolidated cases will be noted as “VIDED.” |
| Jan 29 2024 | SET FOR ARGUMENT on Monday, March 25, 2024. VIDED. |
| Jan 30 2024 | Record requested from the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. |
| Feb 01 2024 | Record received from the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. The record is electronic and is available on PACER. |
| Feb 14 2024 | CIRCULATED |
| Mar 25 2024 | Argued. For petitioners: Caroline A. Flynn, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. For respondent in 23-253: Adam G. Unikowsky, Washington, D. C. For respondent in 23-250: Lloyd B. Miller, Washington, D. C. VIDED. |
| Jun 06 2024 | Adjudged to be AFFIRMED. Roberts, C. J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Sotomayor, Kagan, Gorsuch, and Jackson, JJ., joined. Kavanaugh, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Thomas, Alito, and Barrett, JJ., joined. VIDED. |
| Jul 08 2024 | Judgment Issued. |
