Case Summary
In March 2021, the Biden administration signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) COVID-19 stimulus plan, providing $4 billion to forgive loans for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. But white farmers and ranchers are excluded in violation of the Constitution’s guarantee of Equal Protection, which is secured under the Fifth Amendment.
Our client, Wyoming rancher Leisl Carpenter, has struggled to keep her family ranch afloat during the difficulties of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, even though she faces serious financial challenges, she is ineligible to even apply for Biden’s loan forgiveness program solely due to her race. Mountain States Legal Foundation and Southeastern Legal Foundation have teamed up to sue the federal government to stop the Biden administration’s unconstitutional discrimination against Ms. Carpenter and other farmers and ranchers who, like her, have been denied the financial aid offered to others simply because of the color of their skin.
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Case History
Leisl Carpenter is a proud, sixth-generation rancher in Wyoming’s Big Laramie Valley. It’s a family operation. Her maternal grandmother’s family originally homesteaded on the land in 1894. Unlike many family ranches, Ms. Carpenter’s family ranch has been passed down mostly to daughters rather than sons. She’s proud to follow in a long line of women who work the land.
She and her family raise cattle on their 2,400-acre Flying Heart Ranch. It’s the sole source of her income. They currently run over 500 head of cattle. But drought conditions in recent years have put a strain on the number of cattle the land can support. To make matters worse, the land they lease for grazing was burned in a devastating fire. She may have to sell off some of the herd just to stay afloat.
To avoid foreclosure and save her family’s ranch when she was 20 years old, Ms. Carpenter decided to take out an FSA loan from the federal government. Ranchers like Ms. Carpenter serve a critical role in our nation’s food supply chain. As was the case with many ranchers, the COVID-19 pandemic added to the financial difficulties Ms. Carpenter faces as she works to provide for her young son and keep the family ranch going.
When the Biden administration passed a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus bill, it included a loan forgiveness program for ranchers. This might have been just the lifeline that Ms. Carpenter and her family needed during this unprecedented pandemic season. But there was only one problem—the loan forgiveness program that Biden signed into law excludes all ranchers who happen to be white.
The U.S. Constitution generally forbids discrimination by the federal government against any citizen because of their race. Any racial classification must meet strict scrutiny, or in other words, must be narrowly tailored to achieving a compelling government interest. Excluding white farmers and ranchers—particularly women like Ms. Carpenter—meets neither condition. It’s just plain, ugly racial discrimination.
Making skin color the basis of a government benefit is not only unconstitutional, it is also morally wrong. One simply cannot achieve racial justice by means of racial discrimination.
During the pandemic, our national supply chain was disrupted. Many Americans experienced what it is like to show up at the grocery store and find the shelf bare for the very first time. It’s clear that ranchers and farmers serve a vital national interest. However, when the government decides to provide loan forgiveness to farmers and ranchers due to their critical role in putting food on America’s tables, it must offer it to all farmers and ranchers, regardless of their skin color.
To correct this injustice, Mountain States Legal Foundation sued the federal government to stop its unconstitutional discrimination against Ms. Carpenter and other white farmers and ranchers.
Updates
After the Biden Administration threw in the towel on the loan forgiveness program when the president signed legislation in August of 2022, many thought this case would be settled. Unfortunately, the work for justice is still underway.
Mountain States successfully secured an injunction from the courts to halt the program well-before it was terminated. Before the injunction, however, the federal government distributed loans according to the unlawful race-based rules. The Biden Administration discriminated against some farmers and ranchers in favor of others, on the basis of race. The very fact that happened means there is more work to be done than just ending the program. That work requires forcing the government to make things equal.
Mountain States took the issue to the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in September of 2023 to argue that the courts must compel the federal government to unwind the discriminatory payments that went out the door.
Unfortunately, the appellate court ruled in October of 2023 that Leisl’s case couldn’t go forward, because the race-based payments went to farmers and ranchers in New Mexico, which isn’t where Leisl lives. Ultimately, the court attempted to say that the federal government was making discriminatory payments also based on geographic location, and not just based on race.
Mountain States does not concur with this legal conclusion and is exploring future options. This is not the end.
