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plaintiffappealregulationliens
statuteregulationadoptiontreatyappelleeliens

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Hines v. Davidowitz, 312 U.S. 52, 61 S.Ct. 399, 85 L.Ed. 581

Facts

The Pennsylvania Alien Registration Act, enacted in 1939, mandated that all aliens over 18 register annually, provide personal information, pay a fee, and carry an identification card. Failure to comply resulted in fines or imprisonment. The Act was challenged by Bernard Davidowitz and others, who argued that it denied aliens equal protection under the law and exceeded state powers without Congressional consent. The District Court ruled the Act invalid, leading to the appeal by state officials.

The Act, passed in 1939, requires every alien 18 years or over, with certain exceptions, to register once each year; provide such information as is required by the statute, plus any ‘other information and details' that the Department of Labor and Industry may direct; pay $1 as an annual registration fee; receive an alien identification card and carry it at all times.

Issue

Whether the Pennsylvania Alien Registration Act is constitutional or if it violates the equal protection clause and encroaches upon federal powers regarding the regulation of aliens.

The basic subject of the state and federal laws is identical—registration of aliens as a distinct group.

Rule

The court applied the principle that state laws cannot conflict with federal laws in areas where the federal government has established comprehensive regulations, particularly in matters of immigration and the treatment of aliens.

When the national government by treaty or statute has established rules and regulations touching the rights, privileges, obligations or burdens of aliens as such, the treaty or statute is the supreme law of the land.

Analysis

The court found that the Pennsylvania Act imposed burdens on aliens that were inconsistent with the federal Alien Registration Act of 1940, which established a uniform system for alien registration without the requirement to carry identification cards. The court emphasized that the federal government has exclusive authority over immigration and that state laws must yield to federal regulations in this area.

Consequently the regulation of aliens is so intimately blended and intertwined with responsibilities of the national government that where it acts, and the state also acts on the same subject, ‘the act of congress, or the treaty, is supreme; and the law of the state, though enacted in the exercise of powers not controverted, must yield to it.'

Conclusion

The appellate court affirmed the District Court's judgment, concluding that the Pennsylvania Alien Registration Act could not be enforced due to its conflict with federal law.

Accordingly, the judgment below is Affirmed.

Who won?

The plaintiffs, represented by Bernard Davidowitz, prevailed in the case because the court found that the Pennsylvania law violated the equal protection clause and conflicted with federal law.

Appellees conclude that by its adoption of a comprehensive, integrated scheme for regulation of aliens—including its 1940 registration act—Congress has precluded state action like that taken by Pennsylvania.

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