Legislators Hone Question of Eminent Domain
Instead of spending her days harvesting crops, Texas farmer Julia Trigg Crawford told lawmakers that she is now "a farmer locked in legal battle" to protect her family land.
Last year, Canadian company TransCanada said that it had the right to run its Keystone XL pipeline through her property. The company argued it was a "common carrier" with the right to exercise eminent domain to build on private land. But Crawford would have none of that, and she contended that the Native American artifacts and water on her farm needed to be protected.
The Texas House Committee for Land and ...
Comments (9)
Merryl Redding via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Go Texas!
Susan Inez Aulds via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Hey, I'm a common carrier. Where do I get in line for the cash???
Richard S. Moore via Texas Tribune on Facebook
So why not have the pipe line show that that they do (or intend to do) what a "Common Carrier" should be doing to earn the designation: "A common carrier offers its services to the general public under license or authority provided by a regulatory body." (Wiki) Seems like something TRC could be trusted with.
Rudy Gonzales
It's a proven fact the TEA-Republican's have every intention on forcing their skewed issues to the forefront at the expense of individuals. Texas farmer Julia Trigg Crawford will be up against the most powerful locals to hold her land. Big money has bought and holds the Texas Legislature and their puppeteers of the Land and Resource Management and their administration. Maybe Texas farmer Julia Trigg Crawford should call in the Texas Aggies to circle her land in maroon to keep these land robbers off. If Democratic representation were available in descent numbers these actions would never occur. The Texas Railroad Commission should never have permitted any documentation to happen until president Obama authorized the pipeline to be placed. All TEA-Republican's running for this office will be in the pockets of the Keystone XL pipeline company. Vote Democratic this November and make a real difference.
This is the same BS that's going on now with the ERCOT incompetency and Rick Perry's ineptness with the Texas Electrical Grid and the lower bills and surpluses that were promised with deregulation. Further if Perry and the incompetent powers in the Texas Legislature had listened and abide-ed by the federal standards published over ten years ago in The Clean Air Act and built gas fired electrical power plants, Texas would not be saddled withexcessive rate increases today.
Wake Up Texas! Throw the confrontational TEA-Republican stalwarts out of office in November!
Clint_S
Really? No mention of Debra Medina's testimony concerning legislative intent behind the phrase "to or for the public for hire" from 1917? Her research blew a big hole in the argument that Keystone is a common carrier in Texas.
john cordes
I'm surprised republicans and trrc hasn't granted privately owned pipeline corporations prima noctern along with the power of taking land. Serfs must show obeisances after all.
Wilkins Micawber
Republican right-wing hypocrisy is a thing of beauty.
Or, as Rick Perry might say it: "Nothing is more important or sacred than property rights, but these multinational corporations need to trample your land."
Cris Sleightholm
This is just further evidence of oil and gas companies being allowed to run amok through private citizens' properties.
Eminent domain be dammed!
este francisco
All of the NIMBA crowd hard at it as usual. I wonder what you will do when the lights go out in your cushy little caves.