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Dobrowolska v. Wall5/16/2000
ection lause . . . is to secure every person within the state's jurisdiction against intentional and arbitrary discrimination, whether occasioned by express terms of a statute or by its improper execution through duly constituted agents.'" Edward Valves, Inc. v. Wake County, 343 N.C. 426, 433, 471 S.E.2d 342, 346, reh'g denied, 344 N.C. 444, 476 S.E.2d 115 (1996), cert. denied, 519 U.S. 1112, 136 L. Ed. 2d 839 (1997) (quoting Sunday Lake Iron Co. v. Wakefield Township, 247 U.S. 350, 352- 53, 62 L. Ed. 1154, 1155-56 (1918)). "The principle of equal protection of the law is explicit in both the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, Section 19 of the Constitution of North Carolina. This principle requires that all persons similarly situated be treated alike." Richardson v. N.C. Dept. of Correction, 345 N.C. 128, 134, 478 S.E.2d 501, 505 (1996) (citations omitted). The Supreme Court of North Carolina has held that the decisions of the United States Supreme Court on the issue of equal protection are binding in this state and:
Courts traditionally have employed a two-tiered scheme of analysis when evaluating equal protection claims. The upper tier of equal protection analysis requiring strict scrutiny of a governmental classification applies only when the classification impermissibly interferes with the exercise of a fundamental right or operates to the peculiar disadvantage of a suspect class. . . .
When a governmental classification does not burden the exercise of a fundamental right or operate to the peculiar disadvantage of a suspect class, the lower tier of equal protection analysis requiring that the classification be made upon a rational basis must be applied. The "rational basis" standard merely requires that the governmental classification bear some rational relationship to a conceivable legitimate interest of government. Additionally, in instances in which it is appropriate to apply the rational basis standard, the governmental act is entitled to a presumption of validity. White v. Pate, 308 N.C. 759, 766-67, 304 S.E.2d 199, 204 (1983) (citations omitted).
Similarly, the traditional test to judge whether government action violates substantive due process is to determine whether the challenged action has "a rational relation to a valid state objective." In re Moore, 289 N.C. 95, 101, 221 S.E.2d 307, 311 (1976). Plaintiffs concede that they are not a member of any suspect class under an equal protection analysis and do not allege discriminatory intent. Because they merely allege the City's treatment of them is "arbitrary" and "capricious," plaintiffs argue that the City's custom or policy of settling claims triggers constitutional review under the lower tier "rational basis" test. We agree. Therefore, in consideration of plaintiff's claims for violations of substantive due process and equal protection by the City, we shall first examine what acts have been ruled to constitute arbitrariness and capriciousness by the courts of this state.
Several cases in courts of this state give guidance as to what action constitutes arbitrary and disparate treatment. In City-Wide Asphalt Paving v. Alamance County, ___ N.C. App. ___, 513 S.E.2d 335 (1999), the plaintiff had made a bid for paving which was rejected by Alamance County, and plaintiff asserted that the county had arbitrarily and capriciously failed to accept its bid. This Court held that "defendant's reasons for rejecting plaintiff's bid, namely concern about whether plaintiff was `competent and qualified and financially able' to operate the landfill, were reasonable in relation to the government's objective to protect the health and safety of its citizens, and its decision to reject plainti
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