HomeLAW believes that private property should only be condemned as a last resort and when “public benefit” has been determined by jury trial; and never when the condemning party economically benefits from the compensation formulas allowed by state statutes.
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The Wyoming Legislature’s Joint Agriculture Committee will meet at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 19 in Torrington in the Tibbett Building at the Eastern Wyoming College to take public comment on issues involving eminent domain.
Cheyenne, WY – April 24, 2006 – The Wyoming Legislature’s Joint Agriculture Committee will meet at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 19 in Torrington in the Tibbett Building at the Eastern Wyoming College to take public comment on issues involving eminent domain.
Laurie Goodman, President of the Landowners Association of Wyoming, applauded the legislators for holding this important hearing and encouraged citizens from across the state to attend. “With 120,000 new oil and gas wells predicted by the BLM on federal lands alone in Wyoming in the next 10 years; multiple new interstate gas pipelines, new coal plants, and continued industrial and municipal growth -- Wyoming is in for some big changes in the next decade. While such economic development can be very positive and should be welcomed, it need not happen at the expense of our private property owners, regardless of if they live in town or in the country!!”
The Joint Agriculture Committee has dedicated an entire morning on Wednesday, April 19 in Torrington to hear about condemnation of private property in Wyoming, referred to as "eminent domain". There are significant increases in numbers of condemnations that are occurring in Wyoming to facilitate all this industrial and municipal growth on private lands. Wyoming's current eminent domain laws allow "any person, corporation or municipality" to condemn private lands, and loosely defines "public need and benefit". Many private property owners, in towns and in the country, complain that “public benefit” is being interpreted to be more important than “private property rights.”
Donley Darnell, a property owner in Newcastle stated, “It is time for Wyoming to re-evaluate our eminent domain laws in the face of so much economic development to make sure that the private property owners have as much leverage to protect his/her investment as the corporations have to protect their plans for growth.”
Last year’s US Supreme Court decision on the Kelo case allowed a town in Connecticut to condemn private homes on behalf of a private real estate developer in the name of “economic development”. This sent shock waves across the country and prompted State Legislatures to look at their own laws. Wyoming’s Legislative Service Office informed the State Legislators during the last session that Wyoming’s Eminent Domain statutes do not contain provisions to preclude similar interpretations and actions in Wyoming. “It doesn’t matter if the condemnor is a municipality, a real estate developer, or an oil and gas company – the question for the legislature and Wyoming citizens to consider is this: ‘Should private property in Wyoming be allowed to be condemned in order to financially benefit another private entity?’”, said Laurie Goodman.
Clay Gibbons, a property owner in Worland stated, “Wyoming’s District Judge Kautz has ruled that condemnation of private land is “in the public good” when it helps the project avoid impacting federal lands and minimizes the cost for the developers. That is just appalling and can have a tremendous adverse impact on private property owners throughout Wyoming. I had no idea.”
Contact: Laurie Goodman 307-690-7691