The Supreme Court has a full plate for the final month of its annual term.
There are more than two dozen cases on the docket awaiting final rulings, thirteen of which are highlighted in a
Los Angeles Times story.
The most significant cases deal with subsidies for the Affordable Care Act and gay marriage, two polarizing issues that have caused a rift in the nation.
If the court rules against Obamacare, the government-run healthcare system could collapse and leave millions of Americans without health insurance.
In the case of gay marriage, the legality of people being able to marry someone of the same gender hinges on the outcome of the case.
Here's a brief breakdown of some the key cases awaiting rulings:
• The nine members of the highest court in the land are tasked with determining
whether states have the power to ban gay marriage or whether it is a protected right under the Constitution. The
country is divided on the issue, with a little more than half of Americans supporting the practice of gay marriage.
Some states have been preparing for the court's decision in recent months, with
Texas trying to grant religious institutions the power to refuse to officiate gay weddings.
• Under the Affordable Care Act, millions of Americans receive some type of subsidy to help pay for their insurance premiums. But a four-word phrase written into the law — "established by the state" — could lead to the demise of at least part of Obamacare.
If the court rules in favor of a conservative group and strikes down the Obamacare subsidies, Americans receiving health insurance subsidies in the 36 states that did not set up a healthcare exchange and instead rely on the federal one could potentially lose their coverage, which could affect 8.6 million people.
• Another case in front of the court involves online threats and whether they constitute an actual threat or merely a rant. The case of Anthony Elonis, according to the L.A. Times, has been pending since December.
Elonis was arrested after making death threats against his ex-wife and an FBI agent in a Facebook post, but later said he never intended to act on them.
The outcome of this case could ricochet across the Internet in this
age of online bullying.
• A case involving the redistricting of Congressional districts in states also awaits a ruling. With districts being altered at least every 10 years in some cases due to census data, voting district lines are often changed. The Supreme Court case, according to the Times report, will determine if redistricting should be up to voters or politicians.
• The case of Michigan vs. EPA, meanwhile, will highlight strict guidelines set by the Environmental Protection Agency. The laws would help reduce the emissions of hazardous air pollutants, but some states say meeting the regulations would cost almost $10 billion a year. The case will determine whether the Obama administration's clean-air guidelines, which include language the EPA says would help combat climate change, should remain in place.
Other cases awaiting rulings are involve passports, race, religious liberty, agriculture, vanity license plates, motel registers, the death penalty, and child abuse trials.
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