Allred sponsors eminent domain restriction bill: Burlington NC Times-News, 3/28/07

[North Carolina] State Rep. Cary Allred has sponsored a House bill restricting the power of state and federal government to seize private property for anything other than a public purpose.

Allred, who represents Alamance County, was joined by 95 colleagues in sponsoring HB 878. If passed, the General Assembly would place a constitutional amendment on the November ballot.

In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that local governments can condemn private property and then transfer it to another private owner for economic development.

“If approved by the voters, the constitutional amendment reverses the infamous Kelo decision for North Carolina, permanently forbidding government from taking private property for anything other than a public purpose,” Allred said in a press release.

The eminent domain restrictions measure would bring the state in line with the rest of the nation by requiring a trial by jury in all condemnation cases as a matter of constitutional law.

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Burlington NC Times-News: http://www.thetimesnews.com