A state enacts a law restricting eligibility for certain public housing assistance programs to United States citizens only. A lawfully admitted permanent resident, who is a non-citizen, is denied assistance under this law and brings a suit challenging its constitutionality under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. What level of judicial scrutiny will a court apply to this state law's classification based on alienage?
State law classifications based on alienage are considered suspect classifications under the Equal Protection Clause and are therefore subject to strict scrutiny. Under the strict scrutiny standard, the state has the burden to prove that the law is necessary to achieve a compelling government interest and is narrowly tailored to that end. The Supreme Court in Graham v. Richardson held that a state's desire to preserve limited resources for its own citizens is not a compelling interest that would justify this type of discrimination against resident aliens. Therefore, intermediate scrutiny and rational basis review are incorrect because a higher standard applies to state classifications based on alienage.
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What are the different levels of scrutiny applied under the Equal Protection Clause?
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What is meant by 'compelling state interest' in the context of strict scrutiny?
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Why is national origin considered a suspect classification?