Landor v. Louisiana Dept of Corrections and Public Safety · ¶121

Of course, the arrangement Congress chose is not far off from the “untapped possibilities” the Court prefers. Ibid. RLUIPA is no secret. Prison officials know when they sign up to work at a state prison that they must obey the law or face the consequences the law prescribes; this is simply “a consequence of their decision to accept employment.” Rust v. Sullivan, 500 U. S. 173, 199 (1991); Brief for Former Correctional Officials as Amici Curiae 13–16. What meaningful difference would it make to have them sign a contract attesting to that knowledge? Similarly, it makes no meaningful difference for Congress to require a State to flex its own legislative power to bind state officials rather than allow the Federal Government to make state officials liable directly, as federal law so often does. The majority, in other words, deals in form, not substance.

slip opinion, revised 6/28/26
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