Many Faces of Private Property: Mineral Rights or Property Rights on Your Homestead?

Private property rights as engrained in Texas as the Lone Star. Dueling private property rights are facing a detante.

Denton’s fracking ban sought to protect use and enjoyment of your private property, your home. In contrast, HB 2595 would prohibit initiative and referendum petitions that restrain private property rights. Sounds just like what Denton did, until one sees that there are also private property rights in mineral interests, which is what HB 2595 sought to protect.

What can continue this detante? Perhaps an earthquake that breaks apart land interests and mineral interests. 

Houston Business Journal 

Pipeline to Mexico Through Texas Land. Is there a public use?

The 143-mile Trans-Pecos pipeline will take West Texas gas to Mexico. To get there, it has to build a pipeline through lands owned by Texans. 

Say you’re a ranch owner, and you’re asked for a 50 foot easement for a pipeline that won’t deliver its goods to the U.S. Did the Constitution contemplate a public use outside the U.S.? 

A land owner quote from a meeting in Alpine, TX: “If it were supplying people in this state with fuel, I could better understand it,” Nelson said. “Using eminent domain to [take over land] to supply another nation — I got my reservations about that.”

Al Jazeera America

Require 75% of Land to Be Acquired by Negotiation Before Eminent Domain Authority is Granted

Iowa’s proposal to require condemning entities to negoitate agreements for 75% of the land it needs to aquire continues to move rapidly through the Iowa Legislature. It is expected to easily make it to the Governor’s desk for his signature. WNAX

Eminent Domain Fight Leads to Strong Early Voter Turn Out. 1000s more vote early in TRWDB Election.

Strong early voting numbers in Tarrant Regional Water Development Board races, which have been spurred by an eminent domain dispute.

At the end of early voting 11,292 early ballots were cast. An additional 5,840 ballots were cast by mail. In contrast, the 2013 numbers were 8,143 early walk-in votes and 4,015 mail-in ballots. 

Ft Worth Business Press 

 

Free Range Condemning Entities Graze Into the Greenest Court

On Thursday, May 7th,  Senate State Affairs is hearing HB 2536. Its a fascinating new front in eminent domain legislation granting free reign to condemning entities in Harris County. 

This bill will allow a condemning entity to unilaterally select the court for eminent domain proceedings.  Wouldn’t we all love the power to unilaterally select the best court? the best line at the gas station? the best lane on the freeway? 

Arguments AGAINST Eminent Domain GROW

Surprise, surprise, more people oppose eminent domain according to an Austin environmental  lawyer.  

Opposition to eminent domain use for a water pipeline that seeks to move East Texas water to DFW has fueled campaign contributions, and court cases related to open records. 

Tarrant Water Campaign is Over East Texas Land: Ft Worth Star Telegram

Is the 3 Judge Panel Bill by Creighton and Schofield Aimed at Eminent Domain?

At least one eminent domain lawyer thinks large value, 7 or 8 figure, eminent domain cases may be forced into a new three judge panels that can be convened by request of the AG. Texas Lawyer describes the bills as:

“allow[ing] the Texas attorney general to petition the Texas Supreme Court’s chief justice to convene a mandatory three-judge court to hear school finance or redistricting cases. The panel would consist of the original district judge who got the case, and two others appointed by the chief justice: a district judge from another county and an intermediate appellate court justice from another district. An appeal from a three-judge court would go straight to the Supreme Court.”

As filed the SB included a provision that would allow a 3 judge panel to be called by the AG for other claims of statewide importance. It’s not in the CSSB, but that language remains in the HB and concerns some eminent domain lawyers.
 

HB 1091  SB 455  Texas Lawyer

1992 Rodney King Riot Verdict Leads to 2008 Eminent Domain

Riots consumed Los Angeles in 1992 after a court police officers found not guilty in the beating of Rodney King. Buildings burned.

In 1994, eminent domain was raised as an option to redevelop the destroyed buildings. It wasn’t until 2008 that an agency attempted eminent domain after neighborhood activists opposed the use of eminent domain. 

Plans for a $100-million entertainment district are on target for 2015. Los Angeles Times