OK-Senator seeks to put brakes on superhighway
02/01/2008 by Mark Schlachtenhaufen
(OK) A state senator has filed legislation to prevent what he sees as a controversial highway corridor from being built in Oklahoma, where he said an estimated 37,000 acres could be taken from landowners through the use of eminent domain.
SB 1393, by Sen. Randy Brogdon, R-Owasso, prohibits any state entity from participating in or paying dues or fees to the North America SuperCorridor Coalition Inc., any NASCO Trade Corridor Management System or any other NASCO facility. It prohibits the connection of any portion of the Trans Texas Corridor to any existing road or highway system in the state. The state has spent $481,000, an amount exceeding the authorized limit of $150,000 set by earlier legislation, Brogdon said.
Brogdon said if the superhighway were extended into Oklahoma, it would have a devastating effect, slicing through cities, towns and property. Brogdon said many of his constituents are concerned about the potential loss of land, and he said that in Oklahoma, an estimated 37,000 acres could be taken through the use of eminent domain. In Texas, more than 500,000 acres could be taken, he said.
"People are realizing that not only will farms be taken, but cities, towns and family farms will be split in half," said Brogdon, who also cited related concerns about the erosion of national sovereignty.
The Trans Texas Corridor (TTC) is a proposed multi-use, statewide network of transportation routes in Texas that will incorporate existing and new highways, railways and utility right-of-ways, according to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). Specific routes for the corridor have not been determined. Plans call for the corridor to be completed in phases over the next 50 years.
Trans Texas Corridor-35 is a proposed multi-use superhighway officials say would provide an alternative to Interstate 35, passing through north central Texas on its way from Oklahoma to Mexico. The superhighway could have 12 to 20 lanes in urban areas and six lanes from Dallas-Fort Worth to the Oklahoma-Texas border, according to a 2003 TxDOT study of total lane needs by 2020.
Brogdon said he thinks there will be plenty of support for SB 1393 during the upcoming session.
Hot issue
In recent years, eminent domain has been a hot topic in Oklahoma.
Eminent domain has been used by government agencies to make way for projects that have clearly had a public purpose like interstate highways and public schools. The 5th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution allows states to use eminent domain to take private land, but the government must pay fair market value when buying private land for public purposes.
Oklahoma law imposes strict substantive limitations on the exercise of eminent domain to ensure it is used only as a last resort, according to the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. It also provides procedural protections for property owners to ensure that they are adequately compensated.
Last year, lawmakers considered SB 430, by Sen. Clark Jolley, R-Edmond, and Rep. Lance Cargill, R-Harrah, which created a 14-member Oklahoma Task Force on Eminent Domain Statutes until Dec. 31, 2008, to review state law governing eminent domain and condemnation, analyze the extent to which statutes in Title 27 and other titles of law relating to eminent domain are in need of recodification and recommend changes to update and recodify Oklahoma statutes to enhance the effectiveness and fairness of Oklahoma laws relating to eminent domain. The task force would be required to present recommendations to the Legislature as it deems necessary.
In 2006, SB 1772, by Sen. Charlie Laster, D-Shawnee, and Rep. Daniel Sullivan, R-Tulsa, would provide relocation assistance equal to that under the Federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 to people, families and businesses that are relocated as a result of eminent domain. The bill failed to meet legislative deadlines.
SB 1772 would prohibit any public agency from seizing private property solely for the purpose of economic development and would require cities to provide relocation assistance for those who are forced to move by an eminent domain proceeding.
In 2005, President Pro Tempore Mike Morgan, D-Stillwater, announced the formation of a Senate interim study to look into the issues surrounding the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Kelo v. City of New London, which said the city was within its authority to utilize the doctrine of eminent domain to force private property owners to sell their land to make way for a private development. The court, however, said states could tighten restrictions.
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02/01/2008 by Mark Schlachtenhaufen
(OK) A state senator has filed legislation to prevent what he sees as a controversial highway corridor from being built in Oklahoma, where he said an estimated 37,000 acres could be taken from landowners through the use of eminent domain.
SB 1393, by Sen. Randy Brogdon, R-Owasso, prohibits any state entity from participating in or paying dues or fees to the North America SuperCorridor Coalition Inc., any NASCO Trade Corridor Management System or any other NASCO facility. It prohibits the connection of any portion of the Trans Texas Corridor to any existing road or highway system in the state. The state has spent $481,000, an amount exceeding the authorized limit of $150,000 set by earlier legislation, Brogdon said.
Brogdon said if the superhighway were extended into Oklahoma, it would have a devastating effect, slicing through cities, towns and property. Brogdon said many of his constituents are concerned about the potential loss of land, and he said that in Oklahoma, an estimated 37,000 acres could be taken through the use of eminent domain. In Texas, more than 500,000 acres could be taken, he said.
"People are realizing that not only will farms be taken, but cities, towns and family farms will be split in half," said Brogdon, who also cited related concerns about the erosion of national sovereignty.
The Trans Texas Corridor (TTC) is a proposed multi-use, statewide network of transportation routes in Texas that will incorporate existing and new highways, railways and utility right-of-ways, according to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). Specific routes for the corridor have not been determined. Plans call for the corridor to be completed in phases over the next 50 years.
Trans Texas Corridor-35 is a proposed multi-use superhighway officials say would provide an alternative to Interstate 35, passing through north central Texas on its way from Oklahoma to Mexico. The superhighway could have 12 to 20 lanes in urban areas and six lanes from Dallas-Fort Worth to the Oklahoma-Texas border, according to a 2003 TxDOT study of total lane needs by 2020.
Brogdon said he thinks there will be plenty of support for SB 1393 during the upcoming session.
Hot issue
In recent years, eminent domain has been a hot topic in Oklahoma.
Eminent domain has been used by government agencies to make way for projects that have clearly had a public purpose like interstate highways and public schools. The 5th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution allows states to use eminent domain to take private land, but the government must pay fair market value when buying private land for public purposes.
Oklahoma law imposes strict substantive limitations on the exercise of eminent domain to ensure it is used only as a last resort, according to the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. It also provides procedural protections for property owners to ensure that they are adequately compensated.
Last year, lawmakers considered SB 430, by Sen. Clark Jolley, R-Edmond, and Rep. Lance Cargill, R-Harrah, which created a 14-member Oklahoma Task Force on Eminent Domain Statutes until Dec. 31, 2008, to review state law governing eminent domain and condemnation, analyze the extent to which statutes in Title 27 and other titles of law relating to eminent domain are in need of recodification and recommend changes to update and recodify Oklahoma statutes to enhance the effectiveness and fairness of Oklahoma laws relating to eminent domain. The task force would be required to present recommendations to the Legislature as it deems necessary.
In 2006, SB 1772, by Sen. Charlie Laster, D-Shawnee, and Rep. Daniel Sullivan, R-Tulsa, would provide relocation assistance equal to that under the Federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 to people, families and businesses that are relocated as a result of eminent domain. The bill failed to meet legislative deadlines.
SB 1772 would prohibit any public agency from seizing private property solely for the purpose of economic development and would require cities to provide relocation assistance for those who are forced to move by an eminent domain proceeding.
In 2005, President Pro Tempore Mike Morgan, D-Stillwater, announced the formation of a Senate interim study to look into the issues surrounding the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Kelo v. City of New London, which said the city was within its authority to utilize the doctrine of eminent domain to force private property owners to sell their land to make way for a private development. The court, however, said states could tighten restrictions.
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