Judge Jerry E. Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that Texas can reject guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on hiring felons. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld a ruling rejecting guidance for employers on hiring felons, a 2012 initiative stemming from Obama administration efforts to make it easier for ex-convicts to get jobs.
Texas had asked the court if it could exclude felons from state employment under the Declaratory Judgment Act. But in an opinion Tuesday, the Fifth Circuit declined to rule on the merits of that claim, finding the point moot, as the state won an injunction against the Obama-era guidance.
