Regan v. City of Hammond, Indiana

Dist. Ct. did not err in granting defendant-City’s motion for summary judgment in plaintiffs’ action alleging that defendant’s ordinance, which required residential property owners to either obtain license from City or hire licensed contractor to repair residential property, but allowed homeowners who resided in their homes to make such repairs on their own without obtaining such license, violated dormant commerce clause, because, according to plaintiffs, said licensing requirement placed impermissible burden on interstate commerce. Dormant commerce clause is not implicated since ordinance treats equally all landlords, whether residing in Indiana or elsewhere, and ordinance can treat differently homeowners who reside in their homes, where landlords are using residential properties differently than homeowners who actually reside in their homes. Also, under dormant commerce clause, ordinance was subject to only rational basis review, and ordinance satisfied said review, where defendant had interest in safety and habitability of homes, and ordinance was legitimate exercise of defendant’s authority to promote that interest.