Don’t let extremists, unnecessary laws stymie pipeline
“I felt like the mayor had, at best, a nonchalant attitude toward private-property rights. Worse, she seemed willing to allow much-too-low threshold for the taking of private property – especially for potential uses by other private entities.
Yet while I strongly believe in opposing abuse of eminent domain, I’m not convinced that additional legislation is needed to keep it from being used by the consortium now purchasing easements for the Bluegrass Pipeline, a 1,100-mile pipeline that will carry natural gas liquids from the Marcellus and Utica shale-producing areas in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio through Kentucky to the Gulf Coast.
For sure, private companies should not be able to use eminent domain to acquire private property from individuals who either want to sell at a higher price, or are not interested in selling at all.
Kentucky’s General Assembly passed legislation in 2006 to clarify that point and protect landowners after the Supreme Court ruled that the city of New London, Conn., could employ eminent domain to take away the homes of seven families in order to benefit a large private development.”
Waters, Jim. News Democrat 9 November 2013.