Veto: Foreign Land Ownership

Arizona’s governor vetoed a bill that would have prohibited land ownership by persons/entities from China. The  veto letter for Senate Bill 1109 states,“However, this legislation is ineffective at counter-espionage and does not directly protect our military assets.Additionally, it lacks clear implementation criteria and opens the door to arbitrary enforcement.”

AZ Mirror | Hobbs vetoes bill banning China from owning land in Arizona

No eminent domain for renewable energy

Oklahoma’s Governor is deciding whether to sign a bill, HB 2752, that prohibits the use of eminent domain by wind turbines energy facilities, solar energy facilities, battery storage facilities, hydrogen gas facilities, or
other renewable energy facilities on private property.

Oklahoma Energy Today | Bill to limit eminent domain by wind developers in Oklahoma sent to Governor

Land Use: Data center opposition

Let’s look at opposition to a data center in West Virginia. There’s active opposition that argues the data center “will destroy this place”, harm tourism, harm nature, and that the data center is not being transparent with information to the local community.

Data center representatives say it will be one of the largest data center complexes in the world at over 10,000 acres. Allegedly, the locals found out when the information was published in a paper.  

Route Fifty | ‘It will destroy this place’: Tucker County residents fight for future against proposed data center

Property development trend: wildfire proofing

KB Home is marketing a San Diego area neighborhood, Dixon Trail, as “the first purpose-built “wildfire resilient neighborhood” in the United States.” The building specifications follow the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety, a research nonprofit funded by the insurance industry. These standards include healthy buffers between each building and scant flammable vegetation.

Governing | Developer Opens Nation’s First Fire-Resistant Neighborhood

Reviving property rights in carbon sequestration

The Louisiana Legislature brought a private property rights bill back from the dead this week. The bill protects private property rights by not allowing eminent domain for the building of CO2 pipelines. 

Louisiana Illuminator | Private property owners could get protection from carbon dioxide sequestration pipelines

AI for housing

California cities are embracing AI to automate certain permitting and compliance to build residential housing. The City of Carona partnered with Blitz Permits to use “AI to check electronic permitting documents for errors or missing data, comparing them to the city’s housing and development policies that were used to build and train the model.”

The AI model has output results within five minutes with an accuracy rate of 90%. 

Route Fifty | California city turns to AI to meet housing goals

Eminent domain as legislative leverage

Republicans in the Iowa State Senate took a stance against using eminent domain which turned into this same group preventing passage of the state budget. Messaging from the group said “the government is for individuals and not corporations” and others “called the use of eminent domain “unjust and unconstitutional.”

OK Energy today | Iowa Senators take unusual stand against eminent domain for carbon capture pipeline