Bell seeks transparency in eminent domain
“If Dominion gets the permit needed to build a $5 billion natural gas pipeline, Virginia citizens should have access to the information the company gathers when it takes private land through forced sales, a local lawmaker said.
Del. Richard P. “Dickie” Bell, R-Staunton, has a bill before the General Assembly that would make utilities that can use eminent domain subject to the state’s public information laws under the Freedom of Information Act.
The proposal doesn’t target Dominion specifically, but the idea came from conversations Bell has had with people in the Augusta County area over the company’s Atlantic Coast Pipeline project, which would run through the county.
“They are not happy with the property rights issues that surround the pipeline, particularly eminent domain, which I’m not a big fan of,” Bell said Tuesday.”
Trice, Calvin. News Leader 13 January 2015.