High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1 v. Holder, 557 U.S. ___ (2009), was a decision of the United States Supreme Court regarding Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, and in particular its requirement that proposed electoral-law changes in certain states must first receive pre-clearance from the Federal government. In an 8-1 opinion, the Court declined to rule on the constitutionality of that provision; citing the principle of Constitutional avoidance, it merely concluded that the district was eligible to apply for an exemption (bailout) from this section per §4(a), because the definition of "political subdivision" in §14(c)(2) included a district of this nature.