• About
    • Justin Hodge
    • Luke Ellis
  • Contact Us
  • Eminent Domain FAQs
  • Resources
    • Fair Market Value Considerations
    • Highest and Best Use
    • Highway Expansions
    • Pipelines
    • Power Lines
    • Water Rights
    • What is Eminent Domain?
  • Sitemap
  • Thank You

Texas Condemnation

~ Texas Eminent Domain Explained

Texas Condemnation

Tag Archives: Constitution

Houston Chronicle Reaches Out To Johns Marrs Ellis & Hodge LLP on Inverse Condemnation Claims

06 Wednesday Sep 2017

Posted by texascondemnation in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Army Corp of Engineers, Constitution, Fifth Amendment, Flooding, Houston, Hurricane Harvey, taking

 

 

Government faces suit over Addicks and Barker dam releases

Class action lawsuit in Washington, D.C. says Army Corps of Engineers flooded after Harvey passed

By Gabrielle Banks

A ‘taking’ claim

“Justin Hodge, a [lawyer who focuses] in eminent domain at Johns Marrs Ellis & Hodge LLP, said such cases boil down to knowledge and intent — whether the government know[s] what it was doing and intended to cause flooding that essentially amounted to “taking” of people’s properties.

“The government can’t accidentally take your property,” Hodge said. “If they accidentally opened the lever to the dam or the gates, that would not be a taking — that would be negligence.”

“But if the government intentionally floods someone’s property there would be real merit,” he said.

“Individuals can’t sue the government for an accident. But if the flooding was intentional and knowing, a person can file a claim. He said historically class actions have occurred in condemnation lawsuits but they’re very difficult to pull off.”

“A lot of folks may be directly damaged by the dam releases but an investigation has to be made into each person’s claim,” he said. “I would caution property owners … not to try to jump in and file something without doing an appropriate investigation.”

He added, “I’d caution them to hire a lawyer that’s knowledgable in this area of the law.”

“Hodge said in the press conferences in the wake of Hurricane Harvey the Army Corps of Engineers was straightforward about the fact that they knew homes were going to flood from the releases from the reservoirs. He saw statements on the Corps website indicating federal officials had knowledge that flooding would happen.”

“The government could make such a decision if it was acting in the public interest, he said.”

“It’s a public use decision,” Hodge said.

“They decided to use your property for public use. They decided the general public needs to use your property.”

He said the “takings” law stems from the Fifth Amendment, which says that private property cannot be taken without just compensation.”

“The Texas Constitution guarantees the same right. State and federal law would similarly protect people with homes or businesses upstream of the reservoirs, Hodge said.”

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
  • Twitter

Like this:

Like Loading...

Legislature Bails Out Railroad Commission- Helps Landowners

07 Friday Jul 2017

Posted by texascondemnation in Pipelines, texas condemnation, texas eminent domain, Texas Eminent Domain Attorney, Texas Eminent Domain Lawyer, Texas Railroad Commission, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

budget increase, Condemnation, Constitution, Eminent Domain, landowner rights, pipeline, pipeline data, Pipelines, power of eminent domain, Texas Constitution, Texas Legislature, Texas Railroad Commission, TRC, United States Constitution

The Texas Railroad Commission (“TRC”), an agency that has suffered financial difficulties due to budget cuts and reduced revenues, recently received a budget increase of 46 percent ($79.6 million) in the recently ended legislative session. These budgetary increases will hopefully allow the TRC to improve upon their ability to be an effective resource for landowners and make pipeline data readily available to the everyday Texan. Pipeline construction often requires pipeline companies to use the power of eminent domain to condemn property, commonly referred to as a “taking.” Public access to information collected by the TRC is vital to keeping landowners aware of activities that could affect their property.

The budget increase follows a year that saw monthly budget cuts of over a million dollars, a hiring freeze, and the postponing of desperately needed technological updates. In light of these financial difficulties, the TRC was forced to limit their operations to two core functions, the permitting and inspection of wells. Another one of the TRC’s functions is the issuance of T-4 permits which grants pipeline constructors the common carrier status required to exercise the power of eminent domain. A vital component of fulfilling this function is to maintain a public database of pipeline easements in the State of Texas.

The increased funding is intended, in part, to improve programs for well plugging, oil field clean up, and pipeline safety by financing the hiring of additional staff. The TRC’s staff is capped at 827 employees. Presently, the TRC is roughly 150 employees short of that maximum number. Additionally, the TRC was granted one-time authorization to retain nearly $40 million in revenue collected through its administration of the Natural Gas Utility Pipeline Tax. Roughly $27.6 million of that money will also be used to hire additional employees. The remainder will be used to provide salary increases.

An additional purpose of the budget increase is to continue, and hopefully expedite, the drawn-out process of updating the TRC’s computers and digitizing decades of oil and gas records which include pipelines constructed with and without the power of eminent-domain in the State.

In addition to updating its computer systems and digitizing historical records, the TRC provides an interactive map, accessible to the public, that tracks existing and operational pipelines throughout the State. The data represented by the interactive map may not always be current. This ambiguity diminishes the capacity of Texans to appreciate the scope of pipeline activity and its effect on their lives and property. One day, perhaps, the TRC will expand the functionality of its interactive map to include planned pipelines. This would allow landowners to determine whether a project under development will impact their property.

Landowners, under both the U.S. and Texas Constitutions, are entitled to just compensation when their land is taken. These database improvements can help begin to level the playing field between landowners and powerful oil and gas interests by keeping landowners current on projects that could impact their property rights.

– Co-Authored by Graham Taylor and Justin Hodge

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
  • Twitter

Like this:

Like Loading...

Stay up to date with Justin and Luke

texascondemnation

texascondemnation

Luke Ellis and Justin Hodge are partners with Marrs Ellis & Hodge LLP. Justin heads the firm's eminent domain practice in the Houston office. Luke heads the firm's eminent domain practice in the Austin office. Luke Ellis is widely recognized as one of Texas’s top young lawyers—and one of the top lawyers of any age practicing in the area of eminent domain. Mr. Ellis has broad experience and has enjoyed success in many types of civil litigation. Justin Hodge is a trial lawyer who represents Texas landowners in condemnation, eminent-domain, and real-estate lawsuits. He represents landowners in condemnation proceedings, not the governmental authorities or private companies taking property. Mr. Hodge has handled complex condemnation and eminent-domain cases throughout the State of Texas. If you have questions about any of the issues raised in this blog, we invite you to discuss them with us at jhodge@mehlaw.com or lellis@mehlaw.com.

Personal Links

  • Marrs Ellis & Hodge LLP

View Full Profile →

RSS TexasCondemnation

  • Texas High-Speed Rail: Legal Uncertainty in the Time of Pandemic April 17, 2020
    As most Texans are likely aware, plans to build a high-speed rail between Houston and Dallas have been in the …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • DART “Silver Line” May Damage Businesses in Dallas – Fox News 4 Features Justin Hodge September 28, 2019
    Dallas Fox 4 discusses the impact of the DART “Silver Line” on business owners and interviews Marrs Ellis & Hodge, …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • Kinder Morgan Obtains Courtroom Victory, Can Proceed with Construction of Permian Highway Pipeline, Judge says. September 6, 2019
    In an end to a court room battle that will surely set back landowners, a Travis County District court recently …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • Trump Administration Joins Chorus of Voices Calling for Criminalization of Pipeline Protests September 3, 2019
    The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”), a regulatory agency under the Transportation Department, released a recommendation this month …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • $1 Billion of Border Wall Funding Blocked by Federal Judge June 5, 2019
    Judge Haywood Gilliam, a U.S. District Court Judge based in Oakland, California put a stopper in the President’s border wall …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • New Executive Orders Seek to Shorten Pipeline Approval Process May 28, 2019
    President Trump issued two executive orders last month with the intent of speeding up the pipeline permitting process. The orders …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • Texas Central Partner’s Houston to Dallas High-Speed Rail Project Derailed by a Leon County Judge? April 26, 2019
    As has been widely reported, Texas Central Partners (“TCP”), a privately owned, Dallas based company, has announced ambitious plans to …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • New Session, New Bills – The 2019 Legislature’s Push for Eminent Domain Reform April 3, 2019
    Texas landowner advocacy groups are working with State politicians to reform eminent domain. Eminent domain, though a deeply concerning issue …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • Air Force Pollution Forces Farm to Liquidate March 15, 2019
    The owners of Highland Dairy Farm (“Highland”) in Clovis, New Mexico are being forced to close down due to chemical …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation
  • Tragedy: Deadly Explosion Highlights Dangers of Pipeline Sabotage March 4, 2019
    A community in Mexico is reeling after the deadliest pipeline explosion in recent memory claimed over a hundred lives and …Continue reading →
    texascondemnation

Follow Our Blog via Email

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Twitter Updates

Error: Twitter did not respond. Please wait a few minutes and refresh this page.

Twitter Updates

  • With the #Keystone decision looming, will the President propose a quid pro quo? wp.me/p2D4PK-3i via @JustinAHodge #Obama #Pipelines 7 years ago
  • City of #Austin may pay Whittington $14.1 million for downtown block wp.me/p2D4PK-3f via @JustinAHodge #TexasSupremeCourt 7 years ago
  • Court rules #EPA can withdraw mining permits wp.me/s2D4PK-196 via @JustinAHodge #Coal #Pollution 7 years ago
Follow @TXCondemnation

Twitter Updates

  • With the #Keystone decision looming, will the President propose a quid pro quo? wp.me/p2D4PK-3i via @JustinAHodge #Obama #Pipelines 7 years ago
  • City of #Austin may pay Whittington $14.1 million for downtown block wp.me/p2D4PK-3f via @JustinAHodge #TexasSupremeCourt 7 years ago
  • Court rules #EPA can withdraw mining permits wp.me/s2D4PK-196 via @JustinAHodge #Coal #Pollution 7 years ago
Follow @JMEHLaw

TexasCondemnation

  • RSS - Posts
  • RSS - Comments

Pages

  • About
    • Justin Hodge
    • Luke Ellis
  • Contact Us
  • Eminent Domain FAQs
  • Resources
    • Fair Market Value Considerations
    • Highest and Best Use
    • Highway Expansions
    • Pipelines
    • Power Lines
    • Water Rights
    • What is Eminent Domain?
  • Sitemap
  • Thank You

Powered by WordPress.com.

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
%d bloggers like this: