The Supreme Court was divided 4-4 on Tuesday over a rule that requires around half of the nation's teachers, transit workers, and other public employees to pay a "fair share fee" toward their union, The Los Angeles Times reports. The money adds up to millions of dollars a year for unions. Because of the recent death of Justice Antonin Scalia, whose vote would have served as a tiebreaker, the split decision preserved the lower court's rule: The "fair share fee" will remain in place.
Non-union public school teachers in California, who took issue with paying fees to the California Teachers Association, originally brought the lawsuit to court. By California's law, non-union workers are required to pay the fees to public-sector unions, CNBC reports.
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