The end of June 2015 was the setting for the disappearing days of the October 2014 term of the United States Supreme Court. The end of the term this session brought a variety of issues for the Court to rule on, including but not limited to health care, same sex marriages, method of carrying out an execution for the death penalty, redistricting, and EPA regulations.  

In Glossip v. Gross, ___ U.S. ___ (2015), the Court held that the prisoners failed to establish a likelihood of success on the merits of their claim that the use of midazolam violates the Eighth Amendment (prohibiting cruel and unusual punishments) to the U.S. Constitution.   This case was decided 5-4 by the Court. The case had been brought by Oklahoma prisoners. The decision is available here.  

In Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission, ___ U.S. ___ (2015), the Court held that the Arizona Legislature had standing to bring this suit and ultimately upheld the lower courts determination that legislative process included the ballot initiative process.  The case had challenged a state constitutional amendment adopted in 2000 by Arizona voters which created a politically neutral commission for drawing the boundaries for state congressional districts every ten years. At issue in this case was the U.S. Constitution's Elections Clause because a portion of the provision states the manner of choosing Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature. This case was a 5-4 decision.  The decision is available here. 

In Michigan v. EPA, ___ U.S. ___ (2015), the Court held the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) interpreted §7412(n)(1)(A) unreasonably when it deemed cost irrelevant to the decision to regulate power plants. It was determined the EPA must consider costs, including cost of compliance, before deciding whether regulation is appropriate and necessary. The decision was 5-4 in this case. The decision is available here.  

In Obergefell v. Hodges, ___U.S. ___ (2015), the Fourteenth Amendment requires a State to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex when their marriage was lawfully performed out-of-State. This decision applies to all fifty states, including Nebraska. The case was decided 5-4.  The decision is available here.  

With respect to provisions of the Patient Protection Affordable Care Act, the Court in King v. Burwell, ___ U.S. ___ (2015), held Section 36B's tax credits are available to individuals in States that have a Federal Exchange. Those credits are necessary for the Federal Exchanges to function like their State Exchange counterparts, and to avoid the type of "calamitous" result that Congress plainly meant to avoid.  The Court decided the case 6-3. The decision is available here. 

In Walker v. Texas Div., Sons of Confederate Veterans, Inc., the Court held that Texas's specialty license plate designs constitute government speech, and thus Texas was entitled to refuse to issue plates featur­ing Sons of Confederate Veteran's (SVC) proposed design.   When government speaks, it is not barred by the Free Speech Clause from determining the content of what it says. Just as Texas cannot require SCV to convey "the State's ideological message," SCV cannot force Texas to include a Confederate battle flag on its specialty li­cense plates. (Citations omitted.) The decision was 5-4.  The decision is available here.