January 15, 1999
By Laurie Asseo
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court today refused to revive an Arizona measure that declared English the state's official language and required its use in most government transactions.
The justices, without comment, rejected an appeal in which supporters of the voter-approved state constitutional amendment argued that the government has the right to control its own speech.
The Arizona Supreme Court struck down the measure last April, saying it violated free-speech rights.
Bob Park of Arizonans for Official English said he was saddened by the high court's ruling today.
``This is the end of the road for Arizona's official English constitutional amendment,'' he said. ``This has been a really tortuous adventure.''
He said he does not have plans to bring another initiative on the issue to the ballot.
At least 20 states have measures designating English as their official state language. However, the Arizona Supreme Court said most appeared mainly symbolic and did not restrict government use of other languages as the Arizona measure did.
The Arizona amendment, enacted by voters in 1988, declared English ``the language of the ballot, the public schools and all government functions and actions.''
The amendment said the state ``shall act in English and no other language.'' It applied to all government officials and employees on government business.
Other languages could be used only to help students learn English, teach foreign languages, comply with federal laws, protect public health or safety, or protect the rights of criminal defendants or crime victims.
A group of elected officials and public employees challenged the amendment in state court in 1992. They said they regularly speak Spanish with members of the public, many of whom do not speak English well, and that a ban on doing so would keep them from serving the public.
A state appeals court ruled the amendment unconstitutional, and the Arizona Supreme Court agreed.
The amendment violates the Constitution's free-speech and equal-protection guarantees by creating ``a linguistic barrier between persons and the government they have a right to petition,'' the state's top court said.
State officials decided not to appeal. Instead, the appeal acted on today was filed by a group called Arizonans for Official English, which had intervened in the state court case.
The state government has the right to control its own speech, the group's lawyers said, adding, ``A state's choice to use an official language does not offend the First Amendment.''
Arizona's lawyers said the Official English group lacked legal standing to file the appeal after the state decided not to defend the amendment.
The lawmakers and public employees who filed the lawsuit said elected officials' free speech rights ``are fundamental to representative government.''
The amendment also was thrown out by a federal judge in a separate case filed by a state employee. But the worker left her state job, and in 1996 the Supreme Court set aside that ruling on grounds the case was moot.
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