Rational Basis Review

Definition: Rational basis review is a standard of judicial review used to examine whether a law or regulation is constitutional. Rational basis review decides whether the challenged law is rationally related to a legitimate government interest. If the challenged law furthers a legitimate state interest by means rationally related to that interest, it will be upheld. The court applies the rational basis test to decide the constitutionality of a law when the law does not concern either a fundamental right (such as the right to vote) or a suspect class of people (such as a race or religion). Those concerns are subject to a higher, more rigorous standard, known as strict scrutiny.

Rational basis review is the lowest of the three tiers of scrutiny, and is the easiest test for a law to meet. In between rational basis review and strict scrutiny is a middle tier known as intermediate scrutiny, which is used for gender-based classifications.