As the race for the White House heats up, Republican frontrunner Donald Trump has come
under fire for a number of policy proposals and his past behavior.
But in September 2015, Trump was accused of abusing a rarely discussed aspect of government
power: the ability to take over private property without the owner’s permission.
This practice, called “eminent domain”, has long been criticized by conservatives
as an example of government overreach.
So we wanted to know, can the government actually just take your land?
Well, eminent domain is when the state essentially annexes part of your property in order to
repurpose it for public or third-party use.
In the United States, this concept is regulated by the 5th Amendment, and requires that the
land be used for public benefit, and that the owners must be fairly compensated.
Still, despite being paid for the value of the land, owners are still required to give
up their rights to it whether they want to or not.
Additionally, what constitutes public use has been considered overwhelmingly broad.
Although most examples of eminent domain concern things like trying to build a highway over
an existing neighborhood, there are also times when the repurposed use is actually private
and commercial.
In one 1954 case, homeowners in the District of Columbia saw their homes destroyed, and
the land given to private developers to build a shopping center and office buildings.
In 2005, another property in Connecticut was taken over and sold for one dollar a year
to private developers in an attempt to increase city revenue.
The following year, President George W. Bush issued an executive order, prohibiting private
parties from using eminent domain in order to make more money.
Another big issue is with the payment in exchange for taken property.
Although the constitution says there must be “just compensation,” what exactly qualifies
as “just?”
Currently, this is defined as the fair market value.
However problems arise when that value is extremely low, and prevents those being bought
out from finding equally low priced housing nearby.
In one interesting case, an entire town in Pennsylvania was seized through eminent domain
on the basis of safety.
A mine fire threatened existing residents, and all the town’s houses were condemned.
Even the town’s postal ZIP code was revoked by the state.
Residents were unsuccessful in a lawsuit attempting to keep them from being evicted.
But while eminent domain may actually seem like government overreach in some cases, in
countries without it, massive problems arise.
In China homeowners who refuse to move when the government attempts to lay roads or build
bridges have cost a considerable amount of money in construction hold ups and workarounds.
Many of them refuse to leave in an attempt to get more money out of developers, creating
an unwinnable situation.
So whether eminent domain is a reasonable solution or a violation of rights generally
depends on which side of the land you’re on.
On the topic of land-grabbing, have you ever wondered if you can just show up on a piece
of land and start your own nation?
Find out more in our video.
Thanks for watching TestTube News!
Don’t forget to like and subscribe for new videos daily.