Issues and Policy Where We Stand
On the Offense for Protecting Property Rights
By Richard Thorpe, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association president, Winters
R
anchers and landowners are no strangers to having others think they know better than we do how our
land and natural resources should be used. At Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Associa-
tion (TSCRA), we stand with landowners who face those who are constantly trying to invade our private property rights, whether it be governments taking our water rights, or entities using eminent domain condemnation to gain access to our land, or oil and gas companies that ignore the environmental damage they cause to the surface of the land. On so many issues, we’ve taken a defensive posture
to help our members protect their private property. For the last several months, we have invited land- owners to public meetings hosted by TSCRA and our colleagues at other landowner groups to promote the concept of Texans for Property Rights. This preparation has given TSCRA and our allies a solid foundation on which to take a more aggressive, offensive approach to eminent domain reform in the 2017 session of the Texas Legislature. If you attended one of the nine meetings held in late
2016, we thank you for your input. If you fi lled out the Eminent Domain Survey at
tscra.org and shared your experiences so we can convey the scope of this problem to key legislators, we appreciate the help. But the session is just starting this month, and
92 The Cattleman January 2017
when we call for action, or call for help in the coming months — and we most certainly will — I hope you will answer the call. The website,
texansforpropertyrights.com, outlines
seven areas of concern and solutions to create fairness in the condemnation process.
Reimbursement of landowner costs and expenses Due to litigation costs, landowners who challenge
in courts for just compensation are often never made whole when their property is taken. Condemnors should be required to pay the costs incurred by prop- erty owners in eminent domain proceedings if the fi nal damages awarded are greater than 125 percent of the entity’s offer.
Property rights protection in a bona fi de offer Although current law requires a bona fi de offer, it is
important to better specify in statute exactly what this should include. A true bona fi de offer should require the condemning entity to provide minimum property rights protection and delineate all uses or restrictions for the condemned property. Terms to ensure that the condemning entity will maintain the surface of the property throughout the life of the easement should also be required.
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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