Property Rights

Local governments have a nasty habit of taking everything you've got and leaving you dry. That's how Isabella County, Mich., treated the Pung family, whose case was heard on Wednesday, March 11, by the United States Supreme Court. The county foreclosed on the Pung family home for a tax debt of only $2,000. The kicker? Both the state's Tax Tribunal ...

The California Coastal Commission has long been described as the most powerful land use authority in the United States. A new PLF report puts some hard numbers behind that reputation. The Power of Punishment: How the California Coastal Commission's Increased Enforcement Power Affects Property Rights examines the Commission's enforcement activity ...

Tim Eyman is trapped by an unpayable debt that's growing daily. Between fines, attorney fees, and ever-increasing interest, the State of Washington expects him to find and turn over $8 million. Since he can't, the State is adding $700,000 to that total every year. Eyman has been fighting this unconstitutionally excessive fine in the Washington c ...

Tammy Blakey's career as an airline captain took her all over the world from Shanghai to the Middle East. Now retired, she may soon be heading to the most exotic location yet: The Supreme Court. In 1990, Tammy and her husband acquired 165 acres of ranchland in Snohomish County, Washington. Together, they ran their small business, Flying T Ranch. ...

In early March, Wyoming homeowners Shelby and Trey Scharp received an unusual letter from their county government.  The letter began, "Teton County made a mistake. We required you to pay an affordable housing mitigation fee that you did not need to pay. We are sorry… and regret every minute of distress this litigation caused you." That le ...

In April 2024, California retiree George Sheetz celebrated a rare legal milestone: a unanimous ruling in his favor by the U.S. Supreme Court. George sued his county government years prior after it refused to issue him a building permit until he paid a fee to fund future county traffic projects. Initially, California courts dismissed his claim, r ...

Last week, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in PLF's case Pung v. Isabella County. At its core, the case is about home equity theft and the Fifth Amendment's promise of just compensation. The Constitution says that when governments take your home to satisfy a tax debt, they can take only what is owed to them and are required to return the ...

For two decades, Leslie Daniels has owned a beachfront home in Palm Beach, Florida. His property includes a sandy beach parcel—land he holds title to, pays taxes on, and uses for family gatherings. For most of that time, the Town of Palm Beach agreed the beach was his. Town maps labeled it private. Police enforced trespassing laws on it. Official ...

This morning, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Pung v. Isabella County, a lawsuit challenging a Michigan county’s failure to provide just compensation after seizing and selling the Pung family home over a $2,200 tax debt that was never owed. Justice Sotomayor’s remarks included a succinct summary of the case. “Justice Barrett very eloquently described...