JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – The Jackson Municipal Airport Authority’s (JMAA) lawsuit to stop a state takeover of the airport was ruled “moot” on Tuesday by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Clarion Ledger reported the ruling was issued because the original five members of the JMAA Board of Commissioners, who were named in the lawsuit, are no longer members of the board.

The lawsuit will now move back down to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.

“The Fifth Circuit’s decision did not resolve any issue adversely to the city,” said Jackson Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba. “All it did was dismiss the appeal on a procedural ground, and send the case back to the district court without deciding anything. Once the case is back in district court, the city will resume litigating the case along with the other plaintiffs. Today’s ruling ultimately changes nothing.”

The lawsuit was filed in 2016 after the Mississippi Legislature passed Senate Bill 2162. Former Governor Phil Bryant (R-Miss.) signed the bill.

Senate Bill 2162 would dissolve JMAA and create a new nine-member commission. Currently, JMAA is governed by a five-member board that is appointed by the Jackson mayor.