A federal judge in Texas ruled that the United States Congress passed the 2022 $1.7 trillion government spending bill unconstitutionally. Federal District Judge James Wesley Hendrix specifically took issue with the enforcement of a part of the bill, known as the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PFWA), declaring that it breached the U.S. Constitution’s “quorum clause”.
The controversial 2022 spending bill was passed via a proxy voting rule admitted in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic under the stewardship of former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). This rule allowed for members of the House of Representatives not physically present to be included in the quorum count and to vote by proxy. The bill reportedly passed in the House of Representatives in 2022 with a 329-73 vote. Judge Hendrix held that by enabling lawmakers to vote by proxy on the spending bill, it was subsequently passed in violation of the Constitution.
The spending bill was contested by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton who called for an injunction against the PFWA and a substantial amount designated for a federal pilot program that provided case services to immigrants undergoing immigration removal proceedings.
Judge Hendrix agreed to Paxton’s request for an injunction to prevent the enforcement of the PFWA, stating that Texas lacked the standing to oppose the immigration program. The Act, once enforced, would have required employers to provide “reasonable workplace accommodations for workers who ability to perform the functions of the job are limited by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition.”
In a public statement following the ruling, Paxton praised the decision and criticized the 2022 Congress for the bill’s passage with fewer than half of the House Representatives physically present.