Welcome to the Future!
Way back when SB 18 passed in 2009, it required governmental & private entities with eminent domain authority to report to the Comptroller. They did, and more than 6,000 said, yes, we have the power to take private property.
This year that number will grow by at least the 150 or so special purpose districts that were created and granted eminent domain authority.
Houston Metro plans to sell a closed park and ride to the Houston Housing Authority. HHA wants to build a 300 unit development.
In a public meeting about the sale and development of the vacant park and ride, HHA said that if the property is sold in a private sale, HHA would use eminent doamin to acquire the property. Property owners reaction was predictability not thrilled, who prefer a private sale of the property.
Posted inactivism, private property rights, special districts
HB 4175 grants new statutory eminent doamin authority to 29 special purpose districts in and around the Houston area. Representative Isaac says removing eminent domain authority from a water district is the “saving grace.” he goes on to talk about the abuses of eminent domain authority by special districts. Texas Tribune There are 100s, if not 1000s, of special districts in Texas. Texas Legislative Council has tracks and organizes these grants of eminent domain authority. The 2012 list of special di… Management Districts are controlled by the cities in which they operate and by the statutes that created the districts. The dual level of oversight means that while state law may grant a management district the power of eminent domain, a city may restrict a management district’s use of eminent domain. Such is the case in El Paso. Chapter 505 of the Government Code grants the Monticello Management district the power of eminent domain. The City Council of El Paso has prohibited the…29 New Kids on the Block to Gain Eminent Domain in Texas
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El Paso Management District Prohibited from Using Eminent Domain Authority