Land Use & Property Rights

Wisconsin legislature is pushing forward with a Land Owner Bill of Rights.

Why does the Land of Cheese think Land Owner Bill of Rights is necessary? The need for more information during eminent domain being used by an ” overbearing government”

What 9 elements are in Wisconsin’s Home owner Bill of Rights?

• Controlling Property Taxes
• Broadband Access
• Energy Security and Affordability 
• Eminent Domain Reform
• Regulatory Takings Reform
• Right to Fly the Flag
• Right to Privacy on One’s Property
• Maintaining legal uses for property at time of purchase fee from new laws and regulations
• Smart Growth Reform

WI State Represeentative Tiffany Press Release

What eminent domain issue sparked this activist rebuke? Johnson Ranch MUD approval of eminent domain proceedings against neighboring farm lands

What did the property rights activist say? That the Legislature is ready to remove the power of eminent domain from MUDs.

New Braunfels Herald Zeitung | Activist: MUD should expect eminent domain change

Why did the East Montgomery County Improvement District sue TXDOT? The board thought it was important to show a jury the loss of value in the land:

• lost a great deal of functionality as a large event community center
• Condemned property  included a parking lot that affects functionality
• The State’s proposed remediation parking plan was inadequate to serve the district’s needs or that of the community
• Condemned Property prohibits expansion of the districts education wing

What was the offer by TXDOT? $1.6 million ($2 — $2.50 per square foot)

What was the jury award? $4,032,142 ($7 – $7.50 per square foot)

East Montgomery County The Observer | Montgomery County jury awards EMCID $4 Million in TxDOT Land Condemnation Case

Lots of dollars going into pipeline investment.

• U.S. has the largest netowrk of pipelines.  more than 2.5 million miles of pipes
• High Annual Investment. American petroluem Institute says average annual investment will be above $80 billion until 2020

This issue unites Rs and Ds.  Liberal enviromentalists join with libertarian leaning propety rights advocates

Its made an impact:

• 2 states, SC and GA, have passed prohibitions on pipelines using eminent domains
• Multiple courts have sided with landowners and limiting pipeline takings

No eminent domain for private gain is the new Kelo.

Washington Post | Volokh Conspiracy | The growing battle over the use of eminent domain to take property for pipelines

Which state reformed civil asset forefeoture laws? Ohio

Does the OH legisltion require conviction for forfieture? No, it permits forfeiture if criminal charges can be filed against the person.

Do local governments have access to the proceeds at the time of forfeiture? No, the assets are put in escrow until conviction

Ohio HB 347

Americans for Tax Reform | ATR Congratulates Ohio for Passing Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform

New Sharing Economy Business Trend: Rent a Human to Guide you through the interesting aspects of the area of your short term rental.

The Rent a Human Program Name:  City Hosts. Like a Zombie Hosts on a Human.

the Goal: Like the AirBnB commercials, short term rentals are about the experience

Example Experiences:

• Adventures with a kite surfer in SF
• Vietnamese cooking lessons with a Parisian chef
• Tour London’s Grime music scene with a record scout

Example Regulations: Do Experience Guides need business licences?

Tech Crunch | Airbnb begins testing City Hosts program to give guests guided one-of-a-kind experiences

Which Republican Governor signed a bill prohibiting eminent domain by private, for-profit companies? South Carolina’s Nikki Haley

Is eminent domain preservered for governmental entities? Yes

WRAL | Law on concealed guns among more than 40 signed by Haley
 

Where in Texas is a church facing potential eminent domain situation?  Longview

What is the discrepancy in compensation?

• The city offered offered $1,049.50
• An appraiser has appraised the value of the land to be taken at  $71,209.00

What trends have been happening with eminent domain & churches?

• The City of Houston in 2015 backed away from a plan to include a church in an eminent domain qualifying housing project
• Courts in Kentucky have said that the church’s 1st amendment rights trump a government’s ability to use the 5th amendment to take private property.

KXXV TV 25 | Church owners resist Longview taking by eminent domain

Is eminent domain on the table for the Vista Ridge Pipeline connecting to San Antonio Water System? YES

What does SAWS predict as a reason to say No to a Vista Ridge purchase offer? Rural lands that have been in a family for generations.

What does a landowner in the path of Vista Ridge say is his concern and reason he opposes Vista Ridge? His land’s water well drops. The background:

• This property owner’s water well dropped 17 feet when Blue Water, a member of the Vista Ridge Constorium, began pumping water in the area
• His well water dropped 20 feet in 1989 when Alcoa plant began operation

San Antonio Current | Landowners Who Resist the Vista Ridge Pipeline Could Face Eminent Domain Battle

What state was moving a bill that would require natural gas pipelines to buy any land within 250 feet of a natural gas line? New Hampshire

Would the natural gas comapny be required to by all or part of the land? All of the land as long as part of the land was within 250 feet of a natural gas line?

How far did the bill get? Passed through one legislative chamber, died on the last day of consideration of bills in the second legislative chamber. 

Eagle Tribune | Lawmakers kill new police funding, eminent domain bills

Which city is trading building permits for land? The City of Perris, California

What was the city’s policy? Its called a dedication requirement. Here’s how it works:

• Property owner wants to build on their property.
• Property owner needs permits.
• City takes part of your land when you get your building permit

Why is the City of Perris taking land when permits are issued?

• To suppress the fair market compensation value of land
• Later, the city will take more of the owner’s land via eminent domain
• But, by taking land in exchange for the permit, the city is lowering the value of the land

Is there a pending legal case? Yes

• Land owners had agriculture land that was also zoned for light industrial use
• A Lowes distribution center needed an access road
• because of the dedication requirement, the land needed for the access road is valued as agricultural land, and not its highest and best use of light industrial use

Pacific Legal Foundation | City of Perris v. Stamper update

Who:     People’s Department of Environmental Justice, a group of private property rights protestors in Vermont

What:    Staged a mock eminent domain survey at the private residence of a Vermont Public Service Commissioner

Vermont’s NPR News Source | ‘Mock Eminent Domain Proceeding’ Staged At Public Service Commissioner’s Home

• Curtailing drone use kills innovation
• Existing legal recourse for the privacy violations touted by drone legislation supporters
• Keep off my lawn is not governing when  the future of our delivery infrastructure is at stake

The Wall Street Journal | Should You Be Allowed to Prevent Drones From Flying Over Your Property?

• New IRS regulations
  • will make it harder for special districts to borrow money tax-free
  • IRS says special districts are benefitting by a tax rgulations meant for cities, not for special districts
• Special District Growth
  • 39,000 special districts in the U.S.
  • spending more revenue than all cities in the U.S. combined
• Changing the defintion of local government
  • ​IRS standard is any 1 of these 3 makes an entity a municipality:
    • Does it have the power of taxation?
    • Does it have the power of eminent domain?
    • Does it have police power?

Governing | Redefining ‘Special Districts’ Could Have Big Taxing Consequences

Which Texas Congressman wrote to the Surface Transportation Board about opposing high speed rail in Texas? Congressman Brady

What is Congressman Brady’s opposition to high speed rail in Texas? 

• Congressman Brady opposes accelerated use of eminent domain or construction
• Congressman Brady says the route is wrong
• Congressman Brady opposes financial loans for high speed rail from the federal government

What is Congressman Brady’s opposition to the high speed rail route? 

• The route “splits and really damages our rural communities”
• The route will devalue land 

Is this a consistent position for Congressman Brady? Yes, he opposed a similar project as a state senator

Madsonville Meteor | Brady comes out against rail plan

When will be the next vote by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Commissioners on deer disease reforms? 30 day delay from Thursday, May 26, 2016 TPWD decision to delay the vote

What 2 things did the TPWD proposed rules do?

• New testing of deer for disease
• Radio chipping deer

Who supports the TPWD proposed rule? Property rights advocates. Why? The rules could contain the spread of disease from breeders to herds on private land

Who opposes TPWD proposed rules? Deer breeders. Why? Proposed rules are an over-correction

Statesman | Texas Parks and Wildlife commissioners hold off on deer disease vote

What transportation project may impact Apple facilities? Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) wants to connect San Francisco to San Jose by adding BART down the penninsula.

An Apple facility is part of the plan? Yes, an Apple facility is planend to be used for construction and may be a transit hub.

How is eminent domain playing? Officials are concerned that eminent domain will be expensive as Apple has spent millions on upgrades to the facility

Business Insider | A secret Apple warehouse is on land the government wants for a new Silicon Valley train station

This year Texas law schools began offering classes specifically focused on eminent domain.

UT’s class will  look at the “tension between the public’s need to accommodate growth and private property rights.” u of H will follow this fall with a similar course.

UT’s class is believed to be the only class in the nation focused on private proeprty rights & eminent domain.

Update: High Speed Rail replies to Ennis County:

• Texas Central” does not seek to remove protections afforded to landowners under Texas law”
• Texas Central Surface transportation Request … “does not change or override any state landowner protections.”

Ennis Daily News | HSR rebuffs claims

May 8, 2016, Informed Intel:

The Ellis County Press published an Op-Ed from Texans Against High Speed Rail.

What points does Texans Against High Speed Rail make in its Op-Ed?

• Texas Central Rail doesn’t have its funding in place
• Texas Central Rail has no problems using eminent domain to take land it doesn’t need
• Texas Central Rail is asking the federal government whether it has to comply with Texas eminent domain laws

Ellis County Press | TCR proposes to acquire land it ultimately won’t use to satisfy investors

First came Georgia, then comes South Carolina to ban eminent domain for pipelines.

Independent Mail | Pollution, pipeline bills await South Carolina House votes

South Carolina SB 868

What city is addressing blight by “treating the source?” Memphis

How much blight is in Memphis? 16% of housing stock is vacant

What are the 3 goals of the Memphis Neighborhood Blight Elimination Charter? 

• economic development
• quality of life
• coordination among exisiting local governmental agencies that tackle blight

What entities are involved with the Memphis Nighborhood Blight Elimination Center?

• nine government agencies
• nonprofits
• private businesses

What were tangential legislative changes that dovetail into the Charter?

• Shortening the time that delinquent taxpayers have to redeem their properties — from one year to 30 days 
• Memphis City Council created a land bank that razes, cleans up, and will buy blighted properties

Memphis Neighborhood Blight Eliminiation Charter

Governing | It Takes a Village: The Idea Behind Memphis’ Anti-Blight Strategy

Cities should not block short term rentals because:

• Its an economic boon that levels peak pricing by hotels
• It frees “trapped capital” like the unused spare bedroom
• It is not shown to make housing less affordable

The solution to neighborhood concerns:

• Amend existing noise or traffic ordinances

Trib Talk | Josiah Neeley | R Street Institute | Texas cities shouldn’t block short-term rentals

Which city is moving forward to regulate short term rentals after “animal house” complaints? Chicago

What regulations are being considered?

• Commerical regulation for any property rented out for more than 90 days within 1 year
• 4% surcharge to online rentals with revenue dedicated to homeless services

Chicago may regulate Airbnb home sharing amid ‘Animal House’-style complaints | Chicago Tribune 

A group of physicians writing in the Washington Post argue the federal government should be able to use eminent domain for drug prices. 

The intel:

• The federal government has the power to use patents
• The federal government has used this “eminent domain” power of drugs in 2001
  • It was used as leverage during the 2001 anthrax attacks when the federal government suggested it would import the drugs rather than buy the drugs through Bayer. Bayer lowered its price and reached an argeement with the feds.
• Phamraceutical company compensation could be set adequately to ensure an “adequate return and protect companies’ incentives to invest in innovation”

A simple way for the government to curb inflated drug prices | Washington Post Op-Ed

Little Pink House, a film starring an Oscar nominee, tells the story of Suzette Kelo and her eminent domain fight against the City of New London, CT.

 “This film tells the real-life story of Susette Kelo, a blue-collar woman who dared to stand up against white-collar powerbrokers, and Susette’s inspirational story is conveyed with power and grace by the wonderfully talented Catherine Keener.”

Theatrical release will be late 2016. 

Northernstars | News from Cannes 

Which County Commissioners voted to oppose Texas Central Rail high speed rail plan? Navarro County Commissioners 

The number of counties staking claim to official opposition: 7

The basis for the opposition in Navarro County? Oppose the granting of eminent domain authority to the private high speed rail

County Judge names legislators who support the County Commissioner opposition resulation: Representative Byron Cook and Senator Brian Birdwell

Corsicana Daily Sun | County Commissioners oppose High Speed Rail

What transmission line is this state & federal legislative re-write concerning? The  Plains and Eastern Clean Line high-voltage transmission, a clean energy line traversing Arkansas, Missouri & other central states 

What caused the hoopla? Missouri & Arkansas chimed in when the transmission line sought eminent domain but wasn’t providing power within each state.

What are the arguments bandied about?

• Tangible public use. Congressman Cotton is ok with eminent domain, if the communities impacted benefit from the use
• The Federal Fix. Congress has its hands on the Assuring Property Rights Over Vast Access to Lands Act that will:
  • Give states final approval for eminent domain for transmission lines
• State’s Rights.  
  • The federal government can’t usurp state power on granting eminent domain.
  • The federal government is making a  “blatant government overreach”
    • SOUND FAMILIAR? Sounds like federal granting of eminent domain for railroads

The Courier | Senators file amendment to block Clean Line funding

The Ellis County Press published an Op-Ed from Texans Against High Speed Rail.

What points does Texans Against High Speed Rail make in its Op-Ed?

• Texas Central Rail doesn’t have its funding in place
• Texas Central Rail has no problems using eminent domain to take land it doesn’t need
• Texas Central Rail is asking the federal government whether it has to comply with Texas eminent domain laws

Ellis County Press | TCR proposes to acquire land it ultimately won’t use to satisfy investors

Which state is considering expanding the use of eminent domain? California

Why the push to expand eminetn domain use? To clean up blighted buildings through special districts called Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts

What do these Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts​ do with eminent domain? Combat urban blight with urban renewal projects

What does California Assembly Bill 2492 do? Expands the number of local governments that can access Enhanced infrastructure Financing Districts

California Assembly Bill 2492

Op-Ed | Orange County Register | A bill Trump the developer would love

Will eminent domain be used by Texas Centeral Rail to build its Dallas-Houston high speed rail?  Only if deals cannot be reached

How did property owners in Waller County react?

• Waller County Judge Trey Duhon: “This is a huge eminent domain issue. Texas is a huge private property right state.” 
• A property owner turned away a precondemnation surveyor on his property & mentions their have target practice on their property
• Reports are that deals will never come.

High Speed Rail is turning into a standoff.

KHOU | Waller County landowners vow to fight high speed rail

• Federal Law Says So. The because I said so reason from the government for siezing drug companies patents is rooted in 28 U.S.C. section 1498. 
• Reasonable Compensation to Pharmaceuticals. Drug companies would get “reasonable and entire compensation”
• The government doesn’t have to get consent. The government can use any patent without consent so long as the compensation is ” “reasonable and entire.”

The question: does the fear of eminent domain to take drug patents bring about negotiations on drug prices?

Politico | Pulse Check Interview with CMS Administrator Andy Slavitt

The Incidental Economist | Eminent domain for drugs
Health Affairs | ‘Government Patent Use’: A Legal Approach To Reducing Drug Spending

Your informed intel:

The Legislature: Hawaii

The Bill passed: Hawaii’s  HB 1850 

The short term rental tax: 

• Who is collecting the tax? The tax broker short term lease facilitator (HomeAway, AirbNb)
• Which taxes are being imposed? general excise tax & transient accommodations tax
• Supported by short ter rental companies? Yes

Concerns:

• Is there enough accountability for the sharing economy companies?
• Sharing economy companies should be held accountable for illegal camping, illegal rentals in homes, or any health or safety standards.
  • The Response: The bill requires that sharing economy companies notify property owners that they must comply with land use laws

Pacific Business News | ​Airbnb tax broker bill passes state Legislature

What new issue did the Navasota County Judge rise about eminent domain and high speed rail? The impact to property values for property adjacent to property that is taken by eminent domain for high speed rail.

Why is concerned about neighboring property? Neighboring property owners do not receive compensation but will be impacted by Texas Central Rail.

Navasota News 1550 | County Judge Fights TCP In Austin Trip

Audrey Redford, a doctoral fellow with the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University, makes these points about asset forefeiture in Texas:

• Texas is #1 in civil asset forefeiture according to the Institute for Justice
• Average annual total of seized assets:  $41.6 million
• $540.7 million siezed in the last decade
• It will get worse. last week DOJ announced it was resuming its Equitable Sharing Program, a civil asset forefeiture sharing program

How are asset forefeiture proceeds disributed in Texas?

• 70% goes to law enforcement
• Supplements salaries
• Pay for new equipment
• “also used for other important policing business like lavish trips to Hawaii, gambling trips to Vegas, and booze and a margarita machine.”

3 Solutions for Texas:

• Look to Florida. Require police to file criminal charges before seizing property.
• Look to Montana and New Mexico. Require a criminal conviction before assets can be seized.
• Look to New Mexico. “Eliminated the revenue-seeking incentive for law enforcement by requiring that all proceeds go to a general fund instead of directly to law enforcement.”

Dallas Morning News | Audrey Redford: How police can seize your property without a trial

What eminent domain reforms are being touted by a campaign?

• Deny eminent domain to private entities
• Shift Burden of Proof from the land owner to the condeming entity
• New Standard for Public Use:
  • ​a “purpose wholly for public use and necessity”
• Good Faith Negotiations by condeming entities
• Require a condemning entity to evaluate:
  • health and safety impacts of their project
  • weigh impact of alternatives to those requiring condemnation

Concord (NH) Patch | Rubens Proposes Property Rights Protections in Pipeline Proposals

State courts in which state are grappling with eminent domain for a pipeline over landowner objections? Pennsylvania

What 3 considerations did the judge list in approving eminent domain to move forward?

• Declaration of Taking complies with state law
• Pipeline’s condemnation plans are “sufficient to properly identify the disputed acreage”
• Pipeline is financially stable to pay for any potential damages

Daily Item | Judge upholds eminent domain for PPL

How did a tornado recovery lead to eminent domain? To clean up tornado damage, a town undertook widening the main thoroughfare in a low income neighborhood

How was this project funded? Federal Funds

Were the federal government or the local government tasked with implementing the plan to widen the thoroughfare? Local Government

How well was eminent domain received at the city council? According to 1 city council member, “” I have no appetite to vote for eminent domain takings,”

WAMC | Tornado Recovery Project Sparks Eminent Domain Controversy

How would a county in Texas be able to capture license plate information for the purpose of enforcing minimum libaility insurance statutes?

• Pass a Bill
• Give Counties specific authority to use certain equipment
• Give counties specific purpose to use the equipment
• Specify what the enforcement mechanism will be

How did we learn this step by step guide to county license plate reader use?  Because of Attorney General Opinion KP-0076 that answers  whether Bowie County can engage a private company to use a license plate reader data looking for vehicles that don’t have liability insurance?

Did the AG opinion reference a fee splitting arangement? Yes, the vehcile owner will get a letter from the District Attorney office, and fees will be split 50-50 between the County and the company.

Can this fee splitting arrangement with automatic license plate readers work? No, not without legislation.

What is the statutory solution to make automatic license plate readers ok for counties? Counties need specific authority for the “use of automated photographic or similar technology to enforce the state’s vehicle financial responsibility laws. ” That’s the basic bill draft done for you.

What does the Attorney General analysis look like? Its a laundry list of all the uses for photo enforcement in Texas. The highlights:

• statutes  limit what local government it applies to
• statutes limit specifically what can be captured by the photgraphic enforcement
• statutes limit the kind of penalty that is permitted. (i.e. civil or criminal penalties)

A state representative candidate in rural Utah pilloried using eminent domain for hike and bike trails saying:

““If its on a master plan, we’ll do what we have to do … but not just to run a trail that people think would be nice to have.”

Standard Examiner | Utah Republican Convention 2016: 3 northern Utah races contested Saturday

Who is making an argument about private property rights in cable boxes? Grover Norquist 7 Americans for Tax Reform

What sparked the private property rights argument? A rule change by the FCC which Norquist says would allow 3rd party to change and access content on cable boxes

What’s the issue really? Whether programming apps, like netlfix, Hulu, etc…, must be accessible by cable boxes.

What’s the argument by Norquist really? Cable companies have property rights in their cable boxes, let’s let these apps play by the same free market rules that all other television channels played by for decades

Americans for Tax Reform | Grover Norquist Submits Comments to the FCC on the Proposed Set Top Box Mandate

The property right: The Business of Deer Breeding

The lawsuit: Deer breeders sued the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department in Feburary 2015 over the taking of their property 

What was the property taking alleged by the property owners? The culling of the deer population was tantamount to a taking of private property by eminent domain

What happened in the lawsuit? TPWD claimed sovereign Immunity & the state district judge non-suited the case.

San Antonio Express News via the Chronic Wasting Disease Blog | Texas Deer-breeder drops suit against state over Chronic Wasting Disease CWD disease tactics

What case before the U.S. Supreme Court is about regulatory takings? Murr v. Wisconsin, No. 15-214

What happened to the property owner to spark this lawsuit?

• Property owners owned 2 adjacent, but separate, 1 acre lots
• A County Ordinance prohibits the sale or development of adjacent lots, if 1 lot is less than an acre
• The Property Owners said it prevented them from enjoying and using their land, and prohibited the sale of 1 of the acres
• The Court said, we have to consider both lots as 1 piece of property, and sided with the County 

In Amicus briefs to the United States Supreme Court CATO and Owners Counsel of America urge the Court to:

• Set a bright line rule that separate pieces of property shouldbe considered seprarately regardless of common ownership
• Regulatory takings  have an economic impact on the property tantamount to an exercise of the government’s eminent domain power. “In this area of law, the size of the property often dictates the severity of the impact – the smaller the property, the more severe the impact.”

OCA | Cato and OCA File Amici Brief in Regulatory Takings Case Before the U.S. Supreme Court

What state passed new eminent domain restrictions this week? New Hampshire. Freedom loving libertarian types, sound familiar?

What was the primary target of the NH eminent domain reform? gas pipelines, with some legislators laser focused on “outlawing” high pressure gas lines

What specific reforms happened in NH’s HB 1660? 

• eminent domain will now trigger a land use change tax in NH
• for high pressure gas lines, an entire piece of property must be acquired by eminent domain
• requires a public vote by a governmental body on the taking of property by a pipeline

Bedford Patch | Sanborn: NH Needs Stronger Landowner Protections

Who is arguing that Texas drone law is unconstitutional? A former federal judge

Is the Texas drone law being challenged in court as unconstitutional? Yes.

What are the issues taken with the Texas Drone Law?

• Violates Privacy of Texans on the Border by not applying privacy to 25 miles from the border
• Treats Texans on the Border different from other Texans violating Equal Protection
• No legitimate Texas law enforcement purpose for treating the border differently for privacy purposes
• Violates the supremacy clause under the U.S. Constitution

Texas Lawyer | Former District Judge Alleges Texas Drone Law Unconstitutional

Which state legislature  is negotiating a deal on home sharing taxes? California

Which tax options were rejected? a statewide system for collecting tourist taxes

What does SB 1102 require?

• ​Sharing company (AirBnB, HomeAway, et. al) would collect a local hotel tax
• Deals with local governments would not be preempted, allowing for local government opt out
• compliance would occur with the state controller
• retains privacy for property owners, who would not be disclosed to the state

The Recorder | Deal Taking Shape for Home-Sharing Taxes

What good acts did Dallas City Council do on eminent domain?

• After hearing from a constituent that could not afford to relocate based on the city’s offer, the city paused the project to find a better solution.
• City Council members also forced a review of the city’s eminent domain procedures
• City Council returned to a 2 step eminent domain process.
  • Step 1: Try to reach an agreement with the land owner
  • Step 2: When no agreement is reached, City Council must separately approve eminent domain procedures

Dallas Morning News | Editorial: Contrary to national headlines, Dallas council gets property cases right

What law enforcement agency was investigating land deals in North Texas? U.S. Department of Justice

What transportation project is involved? I-35 E expansion in Denton County

What crimes are alleged to be involved in these land deals?  conspiracy to commit mail fraud

What makes people believe real estate development was land speculation?

• accused of deceiving the Texas Department of Transportation by
• buying frontage land low
• asserting that the land was under development
• and selling the frontage land for $13 million to TXDOT

Denton Record | Two indicted in connection to 35E project

Dallas Morning News | Suspicious Dallas-area highway land deals with TxDOT lead to federal indictments

The Memorial City TIRZ, a special district, in located in west Houston, is geerating attention for these structural and operational problems:

• The TIRZ was created in 1999 by Mayor Brown
  • It called for “qualified neighborhood residents” to be the board members
  • Spring Branch West Super Neighborhood says appointees aren’t being vetted through them, and they have no representation on the board
• Flooding sparked a lawsuit against the TIRZ
  • A 2 year flood led the Residents Against Flooding to file suit
  • Real Estate development boom has led to flooding issues

Houston Press | Study: Houston Homes That Never Flooded Before Now Flood in a Two-Year Storm

Which publication took the side of a small business owner in an eminent domain situation in Dallas? Wall Street Journal

What is the Dallas eminent domain issue?  Dallas wants to acquire a local auto repair shop to create a gateway to its arts district

How is Dallas acquiring this property? Some say that Dallas zoning ordinances are being amended to prohibit the operation of the auto body shop. 

What did the editorial say about Dallas’ zoning law changes that caused businesses to close?

• Violatesproperty rights
• retroactivity strips property owners of due process
• forces property owners into forced sale of their property at a lower price

***This past Wednesday, Dallas City Council acted on the taking of the local auto repair business. Empower Texas***

WallStreet Journal | Dallas Property-Rights Abuse

Americans for Tax Reform & the ACLU Support California’s SB 443 that protects against abuses of the asset forfeiture system.

What protection is California adding before property can be taken via civil asset forefeiture?

• Requires a conviction before before local agencies can collect any proceeds from federal equitable sharing funds.
   

Americans for Tax Reform | Americans for Tax Reform Endorses California’s Property Rights Bill
10th Amendment Center | End the Status Quo on Asset Forfeiture

ACLU | On Government Abuse, Democracy, and Poverty… California Has a Long Way to Go

What great economic gains does Texas Central Rail points to with high speed rail? 

• $36 billion economic impact over 25 years
• TCR will pay $2.5 billion in taxes to state, counties and local governments
• The $10 billion project is a job creator, providing 10,000 jobs a year during the four-year construction phase and an additional 1,000 jobs, once the train is in operation.

What does Grimes County Judge say about economic benefits and the impact to eminent domain? Irrelevant. “The power of eminent domain is not granted based on how many jobs or taxes are generated by a company.”- Ben Leman, Grimes County judge and chairman for Texans Against High Speed Rail

The Battalion | Urban, rural parts of Texas draw further apart on high speed rail

What the land owner attorney says about the eminent domain lawsuits for the pipeline to Mexico :  

• No one has ever used eminent domain to build a pipeline that only delivers oil and gas to Mexico.
• The Railroad Commission does no investigation on whether the pipeline is a common carrier.

News West 9 | Pipeline company files eminent domain lawsuits against Big Bend landowners

What public project does Dallas want to build? A draingage tunnel project

How long has the family lived on the land? 60+ years

What does the property owner say? Can she buy another piece of similar property to live? She says, no, she can’t. In her words: ““My house is paid for — been paid for,” said Freddie Baker, 86. “They’ve got to give me enough money to pay for whatever I want, and I’ve got to live better than I’m living. I ain’t giving away nothing.””

Did the property owner impact City Council? Yes. City Council paused the project  and are reviewing how the city utilizes eminent domain.

What was the city’s offer for the land? $22,538

WFAA | After 60 years, South Dallas family faces eminent domain fight

Which State Legislature passed this eminent domain ban through its house? Iowa

What does the eminent domain ban mean for transmission lines? to qualify for eminent domain, a transmission line developer would have to:

• get in place right of way agreements with 75% of land owners
• within 3 years 

Is this happening elsewhere? Yes, loyal subscribers will recall the same issues in Missouri and Arkansas with similar results

Utility Dive | Iowa House passes bill to toughen eminent domain rules for transmission developers

Iowa HF2488

Friday’s Texas Supreme Court orders included accepting Denbury. They’re back like the Terminator and Poltergiest rolled into one.

• Even though the order was granted on April1st, it is not an April Fools joke. 
• In February 2015 the appellate court reversed the trial court that ruled in favor of Denbury pipeline.
• What was the losing argument last year? That Denbury was a common carrier. The court looked at the low number of third parties that had contractual arrangments for the pipeline.

Why does this matter? This case was part of the fire that fanned the flames at the RRC for the common carrier rule changes. Look for legislative fixes that cements a solution.

Texas Rice Land Partners v. Denbury

Texas Supreme Court Orders 4.1.16

Land along the border is largely privately held. To build a wall, private land has to be aquired by the government. Here’s one view:

Land transfered by the King of Spain was aquired to build the current partial border wall? Yes, land that had been held by the same family since the initital land grant from the King of Spain in 1767.

Surely the feds own some of the border lands? Yes, about 33% of the land is either federal or tribal lands

Where is most of the 67% of private land? TEXAS

CATO via Daily Beast | The Great Wall Of Trump Would Be the Ultimate Eminent Domain Horror Show

Washington Post | Donals Trump’s Great Wall of eminent domain 

Which texas companies were certified under the new drone certification system in Texas? HUVRdata (Austin) & Aviation Unmanned (Addison)

What entity does the drone certification? Texas A&M University System via its Corpus Christi campus and its engineering extension service

How is industry using drones?  wind-power, oil and gas and transportation industries to provide aerial inspections and mapping, and for port and border security and coastline monitoring

Houston Chronicle | First two Texas companies credentialed for drone operations

Which pipeline was scrapped citing legislative reasons? The Palmetto Pipeline set to run through South Carolina, Georgia and Florida

What caught the attention of the legislators and regulators? Whether a pipeline that traverses a state, without providing product to that state, can give the state a public benefit.

What was the action by the states on a legislative and regulatory level? Permits were denied & legislators paused the use of eminent domain by private entities so that the legislatures could dig deeper.

3 Ways this can hit Texas? 

• At this week’s Senate State Affairs, Chair Huffman said 9,000 entities in Texas have the power of eminent domain.
• On the House side, House interim charges are looking at the prevelance of special districts. Hint: Special districts have eminent domain power.
• Private Companies using eminent domain for controversial projects- private tollroad authorities in the Dallas area, High Speed Rail, Pecos Pipeline, SAWs water pipeline…

WSAV | Kinder Morgan Suspends Plan for Palmetto Pipeline, Opponents

WRDW | Suspending work on the Palmetto Pipeline

How to end low ball offers by Texas A&M Real Estate Center: make condemning entities pay attorney fees if the court award is x% higher than the initial offer.

Why make condemning entities pay legal fees?

• Paraphrasing Senator Nelson- these are unfair transactions, these sellers are not willing sellers.
• Paraphrasing TXDOT testimony- when we go to court, we usually have to pay 26% more for the property. 

Dallas Morning News | Here’s how to end ‘lowballing’ in eminent domain property cases, Texas legislators are told

How does a condeming entity bypass a covenent that restricts railways on their property? 

• Get your company designated as a common carrier by the TCEQ
• If you’re a quarry in Texas and need to move rocks, have a relationship with a nearby rail
• Have the railway use common carrier status to condemn land to “overcome restrictive covenants jointly entered by 43 property owners”

Tah, dah… Eminent domain by a private company in 3 steps thwarts restrictive covenants by land owners.

San Antonio Express News | Capitol Aggregates pursues new quarry in Medina County

Which FERC denial triggered a lawyer brainstorming session?  The denial of “Jordan Cove Energy Project, L.P. (Jordan Cove) for authority under Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (NGA) to site, construct, and operate a facility at Coos Bay, Oregon, for the exportation, principally to Asia, of liquefied natural gas (LNG)”

What eminent domain issue to the lawyers point to? “the pipeline proposal’s impact on landowners and communities given the Pacific Connector’s need for eminent domain”

Which new standards of consideration emerged from the application denial?

• the need for the proposed pipeline
  • you have to show demand use 
• is it necessary because of another application approval? A separate approval does not make the project necessary 
• together it creates this test:  “the rationale of balancing benefits against burdens to determine the public interest” 

Lexology | Greenberg Taurig | Does FERC’s Denial of Authority to Construct Jordan Cove Signal a More Rigorous Test for Future LNG Projects?

Where did a state representative’s email cause a stir with a city council? Osceola Iowa

What did the representative say in this email? 

• The state representative’s committee “has issues” with the reservoir
• Raised a compromise of fixing 2 existing reservoirs in lieu of a new reservoir
• The Rep. strongly opposes the use of eminent domain for the reservoir

Osceola Sentinel Tribune | Kaufmann email leaves city council rankled

What oppositions to eminent domain influenced new eminent domain protocols in Dallas?

• Texas High Speed Rail’s “substantial muscle”
• Marvin Nichols Reservoir’s “powerful East Texans have joined in the “no more bullying” cry”

How has Dallas City Council adapted its eminent domain protocols?

• “delay the votes [ on  a waste water project eminent domain ] and instead demand that City Hall start doing business differently”
• concerns over relocation costs, and adequate compensation to purchase something comparable in the same area
• encourage city planners to develop plans that impact fewer residents
• separate the negotiation vote from the eminent domain vote, currently council considers the issue in one vote
• create a city safeguard to limit eminent domain

Dallas Morning News Opinion | Dallas City Council launches righteous fight to halt eminent domain tactics

The Tennessee Legislature is considering a de-annexation bill.

What cities would be impacted? Memphis, Knoxville, Kingsport, and Chattanooga

Does this cost local governments revenue?  Yes, Memphis alone estimates a revenue loss of $27 million. 

What does the bill do?

• Permits de-annexation votes
• Upon annexation, a local government will see a reduction in state revenue based on the new annexed revenue base

Tennessee HB 411

WCYB | Tennessee legislature to take up controversial de-annexation bill

Chattanooga Free Press | Tennessee’s speaker opposes controversial de-annexation bill

California Building Industry Association v. City of San Jose

• Keeps in place the California Supreme Court ruling that an affordable housing ordinance is not a taking of a developer’s proeprty
• It applies to developments of 20 more more units and requires 15% to be affordable

Beacon Resources Inc. v. W. Virginia DOT

• A fight over the value of mineral rights. The state wants coal land. The satte wanted to ensure lost profits were not included. The court refused.
• The case has been remanded and remains unfinalized on compensation for the minerals.

Lexology | U.S. Supreme Court Steers Clear of Two Eminent Domain Cases

Which Flower Mound mayoral cnadiate was motivated by eminent domain? Janvier Scott

What is her eminent domain tale? Flower Mound took her property in 2015 and use that property for othr private businesses.

What does she say about the eminent domain process?

• “extremely financially and emotionally expensive”
• “not something I would want for any other resident”
• “I know what it is like to be bullied by our town officials”

The Leader | Scott looks to protect Flower Mound’s resources

Where’s this rally taking place? Dallas

Why a rally? An immigrant owned auto shop doesn’t fit a retroactively imposed zoning restriction 

So, what’s the Dallas plan for this part of town? Turn Ross Avenue into a gateway to the city’s art community

Surely the auto shop is being compensated for the retroactive land use limitations that will close his business? No, the auto shop position is that no compensation is being offered in the city’s amoritization process.

Institute for Justice | Rally to stop unconstitutional land grab in Dallas

What is this new tax when land is taken by eminent domain? Maine’s HB 1660 applies a land use change tax to land taken by eminent domain. 

In theory, land not taken by eminent domain could not be subject to the tax, which could serve as a means to encourage negotiation.

Nashau Telegraph | House approves pipeline measures

In an editorial laying out why the Dallas Morning News opposes the Brazos Valley Council opposition to high-speed rail, there’s quite a statement about eminent domain.

From the editorial: ” But the eminent domain scare tactic is getting old.”

Why is the “eminent domain scare tactic getting old?”

• eminent domain is a quagmire for both sides
• because condemning entities want to settle, that could strengthen land owner negotiations over price
• landowners will still get to use their property

Dallas Morning News | Editorial | High-speed rail opponents are shortsighted

What state is proposing an eminent domain ban for transmission lines? Missouri

Is this all transmission lines or just privately owned transmission lines?  The ban includes privately funded, long distance, Direct Current transmission lines.

Why this legislative response? 

• Missouri Publiuc Service Commission denied eminent domain to a private transmission line that would traverse Missouri but not provide electic service in Missouri.
• The power line project was opposed by land owners, farmers, and 8 of the counties the that would have been home to the power line project. 

Missouri HB 2418

Missouri SB 1107

The Caldwell County News | Eminent Domain Reform Bill Proposed In Missouri

What’s going on & where? The Arizona Senate passed a bill to keep cities from shutting down short term rentals.

What would the bill do?

• Allow city regulations to be only “narrowly tailored”
• Limit regulations to fire and building codes, public health & sanitation
• Require the webhosts to collect taxes

Institute for Justice | Arizona Senate Votes to Ban Cities from Banning Airbnb, Couch-Surfing

Arizona SB 1350

• Limit asset seizure to instances when a person is arrested
• Pro-consumer
• Pro-private property rights
• Necessary safeguards in place to protect innocent property owners
• Require probable cause be shown within 10 days following every seizure

Capital Soup | Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Passes Legislature Unanimously

Florida SB 1044

As loyal subscribers know, 2 state legislatures enacted moratoriums on eminent domain, specifially eminent domain used by private entities, like pipelines. 

Let’s dig into what supporting testimony for these moratoriums looked like:

• No eminent domain for private gain “it is morally wrong for a for-profit company to make money off of my hard labor for its investors” -a 270 acre property owner
• Eminent Domain Created Unfair Competition some state oil and gas companies said, we’ve never used eminent domain, and now this outside company wants to use eminent domain and compete against us
  • We’ve earned our business the old-fashioned way. If we needed property, we bought it,”- a local oil and gas company

The best offense, is a good defense.

Florida Times Union | Witnesses tell House subcommittee they favor moratorium on petroleum pipelines in Georgia

Kansas City needed a new police station & crime lab in a historically black neighborhood. 

3 Reasons why property owners opposed eminent domain for an otherwise nobel purpose:

• The residents were restoring their historic homes & felt blindsided
• Eminent domain is a scary process for property owners
• Previous eminent domain projects had promised economic prosperity for the area & that never came to fruition

Know your opposition, like you know yourself.

The Atlantic | Photographing the Heartbreaking Consequences of Eminent Domain

What does the right think about eminent domain?

• 75% say eminent domain should be NARROWLY used
• 16% say eminent domain should NEVER be used
• Of the 75%, they say eminent domain should be limited to only public use projects like schools, dams, highways and police stations
• 36% say its a total dealbreaker for a candidate to support eminent domain that transfers private property to a private entity

Conservative.org | CPAC Straw Poll 

Center for Immigration Studies | CPAC Straw Poll: 52% Believe Illegal Aliens Should Return Home

This week Louisiana passed a sales tax expansion to apply a 4% sales tax on short term rentals.

What you need to know about the short term rental sales tax:

• Louisiana could not estimate how much the tax would generate because:
  • The number of short term rentals is unknown
  • The revenue generated from short term rentals is also unknown
• The sales tax passed because of a historic $900 M shortfall
• How did they do it? Expanded the definition of hotel/motel

NOLA.com | Times Picayune | Legislature passes new Airbnb sales tax; bill heads to governor

Techies, Surfers and a state agency? Yes, a founder of Sun Microsystems bought 89 acres of beach front property sorth of Maverick’s. It could also be the plot to Point Break #3.

Had surfers had access to the beach before his purchase? yes.

How did the state lands commission get involved? 

• It began with criminal charges agaisnt the surfers, with video tape evidence of the alleged trespass.
• The criminal charges go away.
• The State Lands Commission stesp in to negotiate access.
• The techie wants $30 million for beach access.
• The State Lands Commission isn’t biting for $30 million.

The Lands Commission has previously indicated the path to beach access may be with eminent domain.

The Inertia | Billionaire Demands $30 Million from California to Allow Public on “His” Beach

What do private property rights, data security & billboards have in common? A lot when billboards are partnering with telecom to track people’s travel patterns and behaviors through their mobile phones.

Tracking travel patterns and location creates data.  Data creation leads to data storage which leads to a trove of data for hackers.

The Center for Digital Democracy says ““It is incredibly creepy, and it’s the most recent intrusion into our privacy.”

NYTimes | See That Billboard? It May See You, Too

A pipeline that will traverse South Carolina & Georgia has the 2 states pushing legislation to reign in eminent domain. Let’s look:

The South Carolina bill package will:

• Establish a 5 year moratorium on pipeline eminent domain use
• Create a Commission to study eminent domain & make recommendation about pipeline use of eminent domain

The Georgia bill will:

• eminent domain moratorium until July 2017
• commission to study the process for awarding private companies eminent domain authority

Georgia regulators had denied the pipeline eminent domain authority. The pipeline moved the issue to courts, and the first judge ruled

WJBF | South Carolina and Georgia eminent domain bills move forward

Florida Times Union | Pipeline-stalling bill passes Georgia House, heads to Senate

Jasper County Sun Times | S.C. Senate approves scaled-back eminent domain bill

South Carolina S.868 & South Carolina S.1065

Georgia HB 1036

What issues are land owners raising in the 12 pending eminent domain lawsuits for the Trans Pecos pipeline?

• Whether the petitions for eminent domain are valid
• Whether there is a proper public use (can there be a public use in Texas if Texas is not a recipient of any of the goods in the pipeline?)

Is this pipeline using eminent domain like every other pipeline in Texas using eminent domain? No, no one has ever built a pipeline like Trans Pecos with the purpose of selling natural gas to Mexico

Can the pipeline start building while lawsuits are pending? Yes. 

News West 9 | Pipeline company files eminent domain lawsuits against Big Bend landowners

What state allows an auditor to look at eminent domain? Oklahoma

What was the Oklahoma state auditor reviewing that included eminent domain? Records, process and procedure at Creek County, Oklahoma

What eminent domain related violations did the OK auditor find?

• failed to provide sufficient paperwork to determine eminent domain was used in accordance with state statutes
• court records showed that the property was obtained for economic development, a violation of state law
• an executive session of the county commissioners related to the property was not retained, as it should have been under state law
• county had no documents related to an offer to the property owner
• county had no documentation related to negotiations with the property owner
• county had no documents related to an appraisal of the land in question

Tulsa World | State auditor criticizes Creek County commissioners’ procedure in property purchase through eminent domain

What state is considering licensing land men? Pennsylvania

What requirements are being considered? 

• land men would be licensed and regulated through the Pennsylvania Real Estate Commission

What was the genesis for this bill? Complaints from landowners that land men were making statements that were untrue about either the impact of a projected pipeline or the power of eminent domain. 

Pennsylvania Senate Bill 991

Reading Eagle | Lawmaker questions conduct of land agents

In a letter to the editor of the Ft. Worth Star Telegram, a North Texan from the Tea Party rich lands, makes the following points about eminent domain:

• The land owners had to go to court to get just and adequate compensation.
• Forcing this into the courts is “either gross incompetence or willful abuse of authority.”
• its not cool when  the “Rangers initially didn’t want to pay the judgments, insisting this was the city’s (taxpayers’) responsibility. This in spite of being lavished with $200 million of largely public monies to build a stadium.”
• This stadium use of eminent domain is “hypocrisy that passes for business as usual”

Why does this matter? Because vocal private property rights supporters will innundate legislators with similar arguments about all eminent domain bills.

Ft. Worth Star Telegram | Eminent Domain letter to the editor

Which state is putting in new requirements for pre-condemnation surveying access for private companies that have eminent domain authority? West Virginia

What are the new requirements for pre-condemantion access? To receive pre-condemantion access to private property, the condeming entity must:

• send a letter via certified mail
• the letter must be sent 15-to-60 days before the date of the survey

What sparked this bill? A court stopped precondemnation access for surveyors because public use had not been proven at the time of the pre-condemnation access

Bluefield Daily Telegraph | Natural gas pipeline: Bill would allow surveyors on private property with notice

Which state legislature is moving a 5 year moratorium on private company eminent domain use? South Carolina

What motivated this move? The Palmentto pipeline

What is the Legislature required to do in those 5 years? Study the use of eminent domain, specifically as it applies to pipelines. 

Jasper County Sun Times | S.C. Senate approves scaled-back eminent domain bill

Is air share on a digital platform permitted? In August 2014, the FAA shut down air share, and limits open seats to friends of the pilot only.

What fix is in the works to allow air share? Congressman Mark Sanford added an amendment for air share to the Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization Act of 2016 

Americans for Tax Reform | Planesharing Aims for Liftoff Despite FAA Drag
 

Which Southern state struck a deal with AirBnB? Alabama

Which Alablama taxes will be collected by AirBNB?

• The state’s Transient Occupancy Tax
• local lodgings taxes, if the responsibility for collection of those taxes has been assigned to the state’s tax office

is this an outlier tax agreement? No, it follows a model that other states & local taxing jurisdictions have followed

Birmingham Business Journal | Alabama strikes deal with Airbnb on tax collections

Washington Post | Airbnb is about to start collecting hotel taxes in more major cities, including Washington

• Georgia is considering HB 1036 which would create a 1 year moratorium to prevent eminent domain by pipelines
• HB 1036 creates a 13-member commission of experts from business, agriculture, the environment and related fields to review the process, compare notes with how other states do it, and then prepare legislative recommendations by the end of the year.
• The author, a Republican, wants greater study of eminent domain and environmental issues.

Savannah Now | House bill would delay Georgia pipelines

Florida Times Union | Georgia Considering Bill to Impose Moratorium on Pipelines

• A ball park is neither a public use nor a public purpose
• There is no public benefit of a ball park
  • And, if you try to say there is an economic benfit, he’ll throw studies at you to say that is not true
• Taking land from one property owner to give it to another so they can make money is no different than Kelo, and that’s what happened in Arlington

–Richard Galvin is the Betty S. Wright Professor in Applied Ethics at Texas Christian University. Star Telegram | Greene got it wrong on use of eminent domain for ballpark

• The Toth v. Brady Congressional race is a he said/he said brawl over who opposed high speed rail first
• A Toth mailer says Brady authored & voted for eminent domain for high speed rail as a state representative in 1993
• Brady says the 1993 bill removed eminent domain from pirvate companies building high speed rail
• Political Scientists call it grossly inaccurate

Your News Houston |  Brady: Toth high-speed rail mailer a ‘lie’

Fox 26 | Eminent Domain Attack advertisement deemed grossly misleading

What case is this? Bragg v. Edwards Aquifer

What ‘s the eminent domain compensation issue they’re in a legal cage fight about? The courts have agreed that a denial of groundwater pumping by Edwards Aquifer amounted to a taking of a pecan farmer’s private property 

What does it mean for 2017 Legslative action? Adequate and just compensation for th etaking of private land is a perenial issue. And there’s lots bubbling around for 2017:

•  Last week, informedintel brought you the case of an ISD that had a good faither offer $5 million less than the award by special commissioners
• Rural landowners opposed to high speed rail focus on eminent domain, the taking, with compensation, of private property
• The pecan grove compensation will be bubbling around during 2017 too

San Antonio Express News | Pecan farmers at the center of historic groundwater case

What type of land is being protected from researchers that want to gather data? Private property outside, the supporters point mostly to farm & ranch lands

What kind of data are they gathering? All sorts, such as water quality 

What do opponents to these new laws requiring permission to gather data on land say?

•  it prevents people from taking pictures of wildlife and scenery from public places
• the true intent is prevent the exposure of pollution
• the state trespassing laws violate federal law

What do the laws say? instead of having to prove that a person trespassed, the person who collected data has to prove that she had permission to be where she was when she collected the data

What Wyoming legislators say about the laws they passed: “ “Do we value property rights, or are we going to allow vigilantism in the guise of protecting the environment to trample those rights?” Wyoming state Sen. Larry Hicks (R)

WallStreet Journal | Wyoming Trespass Laws Under Fire by Environmentalists, Photographers

Why does Texas A&M Student Senate oppose eminent domain? The proposed high speed rail that would traverse rural Texas triggered the vote

What did the elected officials, who were present, say about eminent domain? “Their resounding message was that voting in favor the Eminent Domain Opposition Act is akin to advocating for the protection of property owners.”

Which State Representatives and State Senators participated in Texas A&M Student Senate eminent domain debate?

• Sen. Charles Schwertner
• Rep. Trent Ashby
• Rep. John Wray  
  • “What I want to ask you to do is to vote in favor of this bill, because if you do that you’re voting in favor of property rights,” Wray said. “If you do that you’re voting in favor of fair market value. If you do that you’re voting in favor of keeping the phrase ‘willing’ in front of the phrase ‘seller.’ And you’re voting to uphold the free market.”

The Battilion | State politicians, lobbyists, students clash on high-speed rail

In which house district is this occuring? HD-2 (Flynn)

What are activists saying about eminent domain and toll roads?

• “I never felt like he (the incumbent) cared one bit that a private organization would have been able to use the power of eminent domain over the citizens to build a for-profit toll road.” 
• “Even with personal visits by property owners to his office, Rep. Flynn was fully behind this private toll way, and continued to advise us with statements such as, ‘stick together,’ and ‘don’t take the first offer,’” 
• Bryan Slaton stood with the residents threatened by the Blacklands private tollway when Dan Flynn refused to listen and supported the toll road and the special interests behind it. Residents of HD 2 deserve genuine representation and someone who will not only listen to them, but fight for them and the issues important to their community.”

What happened with this eminent domain and toll road project? It died.

Empower Texas | Texas Scorecard | Anti-Toll Road Activists: Dan Flynn Was No Help

Let’s look at numbers from an eminent domain case involving Conroe ISD:

Conroe ISD seeks to obtain 46 acres from a group of land owners and here’s the numbers that have been bandied:

• Best offer from Conroe ISD:  $5.1 Million
• Special Commissioners decision: $10 Million

What’s happening to this eminent domain case now? Neither party was satisfied with the $10 million number and both parties have appealed to district court. Oral hearing is scheduled for October 16th.

Houston Chronicle | Trial set over land for new CISD high school

Where is this eminent domain case in the courts? A federal district judge and Federal Energy Regulatory Agency granted a pipeline in Pennsylvania the ability to clear trees in anticipation of a pipeline while the matter continues in federal court.

How did the state police stop the pre-condemnation access? The federal judge’s order did not authorize the state police to arrest protesters who appeared to stop the loggers.

What is the issue the land owners are fighting? Landowners operate a maple farm, the trees are beginning to produce sap, and it is these revenue generating trees that the loggers sought to remove.

Citizens Voice | State police instruct pipeline clearing crews to hold off

Loyal subscribers have seen this trend as towns in Montana and California have moved to purchase by eminent domain private water utilities that aren’t providing a cost effective service to its citizens.

But, now the trend shifts to the Legislature. Which state legislature is moving language that allows local governments to use eminent domain to buy private utilities? Florida

What motivated the legislator to move forward with this new eminent domain authority?

• Constituents were ” being forced to pay rates that are much higher” than other residents of the same county
• The Constituents paid higher rates and experienced 

What triggers will the law have to allow the governments to buy private utilties?

• 65 percent of the customers sign a petition to initiate revocation of the utilities ability to operate
• the local government will have access to low-interest financing for utility acquisitions

Tampa Bay Times | Bill seeks to ease Summertree utility sale

Where did a state Supreme Court deny eminent domain power to a pipeline? Kentucky.

What do legal pundits say was the issue triggering the denial of eminent domain authority? That the pipeline isn’t regulated as a utility under Kentucky law.

Why wouldn’t a pipeline be regulated under Kentucky law? Because Kentucky law restricts regulated utilities to those operating within the state. The proposed pipeline would traverse the state but not deliver goods, therefore wouldn’t operate, in the state.

89.3 WFPL | Kentucky Supreme Court Won’t Take Up Bluegrass Pipeline Challenge

Courier Journal | Bluegrass Pipeline loss big win for landowners

• Trump jabbed Bush over the use of eminent domain by the Texas Rangers ballpark in the early 1990s. 
• One family sued over the taking of their property for the Ranger Stadium and was awarded $7.1 million.

Dallas Morning News Sports Day | How Donald Trump used the Texas Rangers’ ballpark to take a political jab at Jeb Bush

New Zealand Sportal | The Donald, Jeb! butt heads over Rangers’ ballpark

NBC Sports | Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, Eminent Domain and the history of the Rangers Ballpark

Ft. Worth Star Telegram | Trump, Bush tangle over eminent domain and Rangers ballpark

Independent Journal | Jeb Went After Trump on Eminent Domain — Now the Donald is Bringing up ‘W’

• Congressman Kevin Brady is encouraging legislators to seek an A.G. Opinion on high speed rail in Texas
• What’s the issue that has Brady up in arms? Eminent Domain. Specifically state granted eminent domain powers.
• Who recevived the letter from Congressman Brady? 
  • Charles Schwertner
  • Trent Ashby
  • John Otto
  •  Leighton Schubert
• What is Congressman Brady’s concern? Whether the rail works for local communities, and he does not believe a rural train route works for local communities
• its not Congressman Brady’s first rodeo, he was similarly proposed during a rail proposal in the 1990s.

KBTX | Congressman calling for attorney general’s opinion on high speed rail through the area