South Dakota v. Dole

South Dakota (plaintiff) permitted purchase of low-alcohol beer by persons 19 or older, but Congress passed 23 U.S.C. Section 158, directing the Secretary of Transportation (defendant) to withhold up to 5% of federal highway funds from states permitting alcohol purchase by anyone under 21; South Dakota sued, arguing the withholding provision exceeded Congress's spending power and violated the Twenty-First Amendment's reservation of alcohol regulation to the states. The district court and court of appeals both upheld the provision, and the Supreme Court granted certiorari.