Policies Restricting Access to Basic Utility Services in LaGrange, Georgia, Challenged

Challenge to Policies Restricting Access to Basic Utility Services


Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, et al. v. City of LaGrange


Briefs, Memos, and Orders Filed with/Issued by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia (from latest to earliest):

  • Settlement Agreement (10/30/20). See news release (hyperlink below). For more details, contact Mayra Joachin, NILC staff attorney, [email protected].
  • Order Granting Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss (12/07/17, PDF).  “… Defendant’s motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim is granted. Plaintiffs’ Fair Housing Act claim is dismissed with prejudice, and its state law claims are dismissed without prejudice. The Clerk is directed to close this case.”
  • Complaint for Declarative and Injunctive Relief and for Damages (5/18/17, PDF).“Plaintiffs’ claims arise from two policies concerning the provision of municipal utilities by Defendant City of LaGrange, Georgia …. Both policies restrict access to vital utility services including electricity, gas, and water, making it difficult or impossible for some of the City’s most economically disadvantaged residents to live in LaGrange. These policies disproportionately harm African Americans and Latinos.”

Briefs, Memos, and Orders Filed with/Issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (from latest to earliest):

  • Opinion and Order Vacating District Court’s Judgment and Remanding the Case (10/10/19, PDF). “Our opinion is limited solely to the determinations that § 3604(b) encompasses some post-acquisition conduct and that the basic utility services in question here fall within the scope of services covered by § 3604(b). Accordingly, the district court’s opinion to the contrary is hereby vacated, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. On remand, the district court should determine anew whether the plaintiffs’ disparate impact allegations have stated a claim upon which relief may be granted under § 3604(b).5.”