No State Power: Critiquing the Eighth Circuit�s Preemption Analysis in Keller v. City of Fremont

In Keller v. City of Fremont, the Eighth Circuit overturned the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, finding that federal law did not preempt a municipal housing ordinance that prevents undocumented immigrants from renting property anywhere in the City of Fremont. I contend that the Eighth Circuit erred in its application of preemption doctrine. The Third, Fifth, and Eleventh Circuits have all overturned housing provisions similar to Fremont’s. Although the Supreme Court denied certiorari to review Keller II in May 2014, the conflict among the circuits’ preemption analyses remains and must be resolved. The Supreme Court should rectify the preemption analysis in Keller II by resolving the circuit split, applying the Third, Fifth, and Eleventh Circuits’ application of preemption doctrine to local laws that restrict the ability of immigrants to reside in certain locations. Such laws are inconsistent with federal immigration policy and invade the exclusive