Is Eminent Domain Reform Dead?

November 09, 2006 | By PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION

by Timothy Sandefur

John C. Murphy and Lisa J. Holmes at Nossaman, Gunther, Knox, and Elliott, have an article today about the aftermath of Proposition 90's defeat. Although Murphy and Holmes are right about some of the flaws in Proposition 90–the self-contradictory definition of "just compensation," for example, was literally unenforceable–their article goes on to claim that the California legislature has fixed some of the problems with the five laws enacted in October. In fact, as we've explained before, these new laws are not just "incremental," they are virtually meaningless windowdressing, designed to fool voters into thinking the problem is being addressed. These bills are not merely "Prop. 90-lite," they are like being offered rice cakes when what you ordered was pizza.