A federal court has ruled that the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority violated the First Amendment by refusing to allow the transit workers union president to testify at a public meeting.
Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1212-Chattanooga hailed the ruling as an important one for CARTA employees in a Friday afternoon news release.
"This is a big victory for CARTA transit workers and all workers' free speech rights," reads a statement from bus operator and local president Kathryn Smith. "CARTA was attempting to squash on our First Amendment right to bring to the attention of the public and CARTA board members our concerns about safety and service, and mistreatment and disrespect of our members."
According to the ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, CARTA prohibited Smith from appearing at its monthly public board meeting in December 2017, after she informed the board she wished to testify regarding worker complaints over working conditions, safety, service, and discrimination.
She again requested in February and March to be allowed to address the board in public and was refused.
Then, after another request in April, board Chairman Steve Jett agreed to allow her to speak, but laid out a number of rules she had to follow, including CARTA's prerogative to prohibit speakers from raising "disagreements" about "personnel decisions."
Four days later, the union filed suit.
The federal court found that Smith's speech, which touched on issues of public safety and racial and sexual discrimination, "ascends to the apex of First Amendment protection," the ruling reads.
"Because Ms. Smith sought to speak as a citizen on matters of public concern and because CARTA presents the Court with no evidence of a countervailing interest that justifies the restriction of her speech, CARTA's refusal to permit her to speak at its monthly meetings violated the First Amendment."
David Roscow, a spokesman for the Amalgamated Transit Union, said the union will seek attorneys' fees from CARTA as part of the ruling.
"They said they would not pay it, so we will be filing a petition with the court for attorney's fees," he said.
CARTA Executive Director Lisa Maragnano said CARTA could not comment because the litigation is ongoing.