West Virginia v. B. P. J. · ¶203
The two tests are not the same. Courts will uphold legislation subject to rational-basis review so long as there is “any reasonably conceivable state of facts that could provide a rational basis for the classification.” FCC v. Beach Com munications, Inc., 508 U. S. 307, 313 (1993). Heightened scrutiny, by contrast, requires courts to “closely scrutinize legislative choices” to ensure that the use of the classification satisfies the required means-ends fit. Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, Inc., 473 U. S. 432, 441 (1985); see also Skrmetti, 605 U. S., at 552–553 (BARRETT, J., concurring) (drawing this distinction); id., at 528–529 (THOMAS, J., concurring) (same). In Virginia, for instance, the Commonwealth had cited a “substantial body of contemporary scholarship and research,” 518 U. S., at 576 (Scalia, J., dissenting), to support its assertions that it need not allow women to attend…Read in context ›
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