ISSUE BRIEF: Protecting Private Property Under ESA
Private Property has suffered because of ESA for
far too long! Reform with provisions for property owners needs to
happen!
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Action on this Issue
The Issue:
The private ownership of property is a fundamental right in America and is protected by the U.S. Constitution. The 5th Amendment prohibits the "taking" of private property without compensation. Part and parcel of such ownership is the expectation that landowners will be able to legally use their land as they see fit, so long as others are not harmed by that use. Very few laws have the potential to impact on how a landowner uses his land like the Endangered Species Act (ESA). There, federal agencies use involuntary, coercive tactics to require property owners to manage land for the benefit of a listed species.
However, actually getting relief under the Fifth Amendment for ESA-related activities has proven difficult for property owners. Determining what constitutes a taking and the appropriate remedies when it occurs have proven problematic for the courts. The federal government is rarely required to fairly compensate landowners for takings when ESA regulations and listings diminish the value of private property.
Impacts on the West:
A reduction in the amount of privately-owned property through ESA-related regulation reduces economic productivity from land and the lessens tax revenues gained when the land was in private ownership. The impacts of ESA are so pervasive that it is difficult to capture them all. However, here is one study that shows that the costs of the ESA are in the billions of dollars a year: http://resourcescommittee.house.gov/issues/more/esa/accountingforspecies.pdf
Solutions:
- Take 60 seconds to write a letter to
Congress telling them to take a stand for private property
rights by reforming the Endangered Species Act!
Take Action on this Issue