Lincoln v. Vigil
United States Supreme Court
508 U.S. 182 (1993)
The Indian Health Service, funded by a yearly lump-sum congressional appropriation, provided health services to handicapped Indian children in the southwestern United States through the Indian Children's Program; in 1985, the Service decided to discontinue the Program and reallocate its resources to a broader nationwide effort for Indian children. Program beneficiaries (plaintiffs) sued the Service's Director and others (defendants), alleging the discontinuation violated several statutes, agency regulations, and the Fifth Amendment; both the district court and court of appeals considered whether this decision was reviewable under APA § 701(a)(2), with the court of appeals holding that it was, prompting the Service to petition for certiorari.
Whether the Administrative Procedures Act permits judicial review of administrative decisions committed to agency discretion.