Kelo Containment Continues
A somewhat heartening roundup article from the L.A. Times on how state governments have risen to the challenge presented by the Supreme Court in their dreadful Kelo v. New London decision, by passing laws that limit government's ability to use eminent domain merely for economic redevelopment. An excerpt:
The final paragraph of the majority opinion in Kelo essentially invited legislatures to make their own rules on eminent domain if they didn't like the decision. Almost every state commenced to do just that.
Delaware moved first, permitting eminent domain to be used only for a recognized public purpose. Alabama, Ohio and Texas passed bills barring the use of eminent domain to increase tax revenue or promote private development. In November, Michigan voters will cast ballots on an amendment that would prohibit the taking of property for economic development.
In recent weeks, Utah, Kansas and New Hampshire limited eminent domain, as did Indiana, Idaho, West Virginia, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Maryland has more than 40 Kelo-inspired eminent domain bills pending. California has at least a dozen.
Most of these proposals--including several in California--preclude the use of eminent domain for economic development or increased tax revenue.
And anti-Kelo feeling crosses party lines, with Democrats and Republicans seeming equally likely to propose or support new restrictions on eminent domain. Article long, detailed, and worth reading in full.
A compilation of earlier takes from Reason and the Reason Foundation on eminent domain issues here.
