Members Of Congress Urge SCOTUS To Strike Down ACA As Unconstitutional

NCPA Executive Co-Authors Amicus Brief Filed with SCOTUS on Behalf of Members of Congress

An amicus brief, filed on behalf of the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, demonstrates the unconstitutionality of the Affordable Care Act and urges the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down the law as violating the exclusive Constitutional prerogative of the House of Representatives alone to originate tax laws.

The brief was co-authored by Jacki Pick, National Center for Policy Analysis executive vice president/ COO and former counsel to the Chairman of the U. S. House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution.

“This is the Supreme Court’s chance to finally declare the unconstitutionality of Obamacare under the Origination Clause,” said Pick. “As Chief Justice Roberts wrote in his 2012 opinion, NFIB v. Sebelius: ‘Even if the taxing power enables Congress to impose a tax on not obtaining health insurance, any tax must still comply with other requirements in the Constitution.’ Chief among these requirements is the Origination Clause, providing that ‘all bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives.’ Whether or not the Chief Justice realized it, every word of Obamacare originated in the Senate, not the House, making the law unconstitutional the moment Chief Justice Roberts handed down the Court’s decision, because the Constitution provides that only the legislative house closest and most accountable to the people may tax the people. Therefore, the seed of the ACA’s demise was built into Robert’s decision.”

“It is emphatically the role of the judiciary to say what the law is – not what it should be, because the latter is the job of the legislature. The legislature failed to create Obamacare in accordance with the supreme law of the land, the Constitution, so the Court must strike the law. It's important to follow the words of the Constitution rather than permit the Senate to usurp the House’s power, or to permit the House to shift its responsibility for the unpopular task of raising taxes to the more politically insulated side of Capitol Hill – the Senate side that only stands for election once every six years,” said Pick.

Members of the House of Representatives will hold a news conference on the filing of the amicus brief tomorrow, Dec. 2nd. Time and meeting room will come from the office of Congressman Trent Franks (R- AZ 8th Dist.), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution.

About The National Center For Policy Analysis (NCPA)
The National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy research organization, established in 1983. We bring together the best and brightest minds to tackle the country's most difficult public policy problems — in health care, taxes, retirement, education, energy and the environment. For more information, visit http://www.ncpa.org/index.php.