Virginia to vote on Eminent Domain Amendment

A movement against eminent domain abuses



Voters to Have Final Say on Eminent Domain Amendment

Opinions are divided as to what kind of influence the amendment could have if passed.

By Michael Lee Pope
Connection Newspapers

This fall, voters across Virginia will be confronted with a hotly debated amendment to the Virginia Constitution that seeks to limit the ability of local governments to use the power of eminent domain. According to various sides of the debate, the measure would either be a disastrous move that would drastically increase the price of transportation projects, an empty measure that's intended to appeal to voters or a bold way to prevent local governments from abusing the power of eminent domain.

"Voters tend to view eminent domain negatively," said Jeff Skelley, political analyst with the Virginia Center for Politics. "So delegates and senators who voted for it probably just gave themselves a little more cover."

The lopsided nature of support for the effort in the General Assembly certainly speaks to the political popularity of being seen as tough on eminent domain. The state Senate approved the amendment 23 to 17, and the House of Delegates passed the measure with an 80 to 18 vote. Essentially, the amendment would allow business owners to seek damages from local governments if they could prove that property taken under eminent domain resulted in a loss of profits or loss of access, the definitions of which are laid out in a separate bill now working its way through the General Assembly. Although many feared that the implementation could allow lawsuits for something as simple as removing a left turn lane, the legislation outlining how it would work is crafted very narrowly to focus on actual land being taken. Nevertheless, some say the final version would create a hardship for the Virginia Department of Transportation.

"It's not as bad as it was, but it is still a very troublesome piece of legislation and should not have passed," said state Sen. Barbara Favola (D-31), who voted against the amendment and the implementing legislation. "I think it�s going to be very challenging for VDOT to be able to acquire private right-of-way to put into public use without paying an incredibly inordinate amount of money."

THE DEBATE ABOUT eminent domain snapped into the public conscious back in 2005 when the U.S. Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision in Kelo versus City of New London. The majority in that case ruled that the government taking of property from one private owner to give to another for economic development constitutes a permissible public use under the Fifth Amendment. That ruling created a massive backlash, including 2007 legislation in the Virginia General Assembly that defined "public use" in a way that narrowed how eminent domain could be used in the commonwealth.

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One state is going to let voters decide on an amendment to their
state constitution that would prevent local governments from
abusing the power of eminent domain.

Of course, there are two side to this:

There are those who own property, they bought it, they paid taxes
on it, and they want to keep what is theirs.

And then there are those who think that gov't should be able to
take what they want for whatever reason.

We'll find out in November how this plays out...

Video:

Government corruption: Virginia to vote on Eminent Domain Amendment

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This is all about sustainable development, and agenda 21 don't let anyone tell you different, they want all our property no ownership of any land by citizens read up on agenda 21