Jun
12
Written by:
Andy Hogue
6/12/2009 3:34 PM
Gov. Rick Perry is set to host a press conference Monday morning in front of the Alamo in support of HJR 14 -- which many property rights groups are thankful for but did not think went far enough in protecting property rights from eminent domain abuses.
LSR takes a look back at its Jan. 23 edition for a reaction to HJR 14 from Texas Farm Bureau:
Half a loaf?
[Gov. Rick] Perry found himself at odds with several property rights groups after he vetoed 2007’s House Bill 2006. HB 2006 was intended to strengthen landowner protection in eminent domain lawsuits, but Perry said the bill would open the door for lawsuits against the state costing up to a billion dollars to defend.
Kenneth Dierschke, president of the Texas Farm Bureau, said in a press release that eminent domain reform in Texas must include “diminished access protection.” Farm Bureau spokesman Gene Hall described diminished access protection as making sure land owners are compensated the full amount for property taken prior to devaluation from having been taken.
There are no plans to include diminished access protection in the constitutional amendment, [Sen. Robert] Duncan said, following a question from LSR at Thursday’s press conference.
Eminent domain reform in Texas, Dierschke said, must rest on three pillars: “Good faith negotiation before condemnation, adequate compensation which includes factors such as diminished access, and a no-nonsense definition of public use.”
Hall said Perry’s support of a constitutional amendment is “very encouraging.”
“He’s given us a good faith offer, which is one of our concerns as well,” Hall said. “However, without diminished access protection, it’s still half a loaf. Compensation is the very heart of this issue and that’s what we’re very concerned about.”
That’s not to say Perry hasn’t addressed low-balling property owners in the compensation process. In a press release, Perry cautioned against use of the Texas Supreme Court’s decision in Hubenak v. San Jacinto Gas Transmission Co., which allows government entities to make an unreasonably low offer on a person’s property, and then respond to an owner’s refusal by taking the land.
Perry mentioned the efforts of Rep. Jim Jackson, commending him for sponsoring a 2007 constitutional amendment allowing landowners to buy back land at the price the government paid for it if it is not used for the project.
Perry said about 90 percent of acreage in Texas is privately owned – reason enough for a strengthening of private property rights.