Torres v. Texas Department of Public Safety

Le Roy Torres, a Texas state trooper and Army reservist, developed constrictive bronchiolitis from burn pit exposure during his deployment in Iraq. After returning home, he sought a reasonable accommodation from his employer, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), but was allegedly denied and forced to resign. Torres sued DPS under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of military service. Texas moved to dismiss, invoking state sovereign immunity. The case reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which on June 29, 2022, ruled 5-4 that Congress possesses the power under its Article I war powers to abrogate state sovereign immunity, thereby allowing Torres's lawsuit to proceed. The decision resolved a circuit split and reaffirmed broad congressional authority in matters of national defense.

The Supreme Court reversed the Texas Court of Appeals, holding that Congress may validly abrogate state sovereign immunity when legislating under its Article I war powers. Justice Breyer authored the majority opinion; the vote was 5-4. Torres's USERRA claim against the Texas Department of Public Safety was allowed to proceed.

Whether Congress has the constitutional power under its Article I war powers to abrogate state sovereign immunity, enabling a state employee to sue his state employer for alleged violations of USERRA.

The ruling significantly strengthened employment protections for service members returning from duty, ensuring they can hold state employers accountable for USERRA violations. It set a landmark precedent on the scope of congressional war powers, extending to toxic exposure cases such as those involving burn pits. Veterans’ advocates hailed the decision as a crucial safeguard against state-level discrimination, while also raising broader implications for future legislation enacted under the war powers clause.