Senator Seeks To Ban DOT’s Seizure Of ‘Intangible Property’ Under Eminent Domain
“state senator wants to ban the Connecticut Department of Transportation’s new practice of using its power of eminent domain to seize “intangible property,” such as bus companies’ licenses to carry passengers on specified routes.
Sen. Joe Markley, R-Southington, says he’s “alarmed” that the DOT has expanded the definition of what it can seize through under the state’s eminent domain law beyond the traditional power of condemning of land and buildings to make way for road construction.
He’s introduced a bill “to limit the state’s power of eminent domain to the taking of tangible real property” – and to “specify that such power does not extend to the taking of licenses or permits.
“This radical expansion of eminent domain threatens every business person and property-holder in Connecticut,” Markley said.
In a phone interview Tuesday, Markley said he was “thunderstruck” when he read a Jan. 4 Government Watch column in The Courant that said the DOT has expanded its use of eminent domain beyond its usual taking of property you can see or touch, such as land and buildings.
The DOT has seized four private bus companies’ long-standing rights to carry passengers over certain routes. The companies hold those rights under licenses – called “certificates of public convenience and necessity” – which were issued by the state decades ago.””
Lender, Jon. Hartford Courant 4 February 2015.