11th Circuit contractor vaccine mandate opinion has implications for EO 11246

In December of 2021, Judge R. Stan Baker of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia issued a nationwide preliminary injunction of the federal contractor vaccine mandate in the case of Georgia v. Biden. On appeal, in a decision issued August 26, 2022, the 11th Circuit upheld the injunction but reduced its scope. Undoubtedly, by upholding the injunction, the 11th Circuit bolstered the case for opponents of the mandate, but the true significance of the ruling has little to do with vaccine mandates as the opinion calls the legality of Executive Order 11246 (EO 11246) into question.

Georgia v. Biden is part of a rising tide of cases challenging the president’s authority to impose obligations on federal contractors through executive orders, such as EO 11246, that are based on the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act (the Procurement Act). These challenges have the potential to remake the regulatory landscape for federal contractors.

What this opinion means for vaccine mandate