Bill: HB 2536, 84(R) - 2015

Committee

House Land & Resource Management

Vote Recommendation

Vote Recommendation Economic Freedom Property Rights Personal Responsibility Limited Government Individual Liberty
No Neutral Negative Neutral Neutral Negative

Author(s)

Patricia Harless

Bill Caption

Relating to jurisdiction in an eminent domain proceeding in Harris County.

Fiscal Notes

No significant fiscal implication anticipated to the State.

Local Government

Because the bill would not have statewide impact on units of local government of the same type or class, no comment from this office is required by the rules of the House/Senate as to its probable fiscal implication on units of local government.


Bill Analysis

Sec. 21.013, Property Code, requires that “a party initiating a condemnation proceeding in a county in which there is one or more county courts at law with jurisdiction shall file the petition with any clerk authorized to handle such filings for that court or courts.” This means that in most instances, in counties all across Texas eminent domain suits are filed in county courts of law. H.B. 2536 would change this only for eminent domain lawsuits in Harris County. This legislation would allow—though not require—a condemnor to file “a petition with the district [court] clerk when the amount in controversy exceeds” $200,000. In other words, under HB 2536 condemnors at their discretion would be able to move condemnation cases from county courts at law to district courts. 

Vote Recommendation Notes

05/18/2015 We oppose HB 2536 in the second chamber. The second chamber sponsor is Senator Whitmire. The second chamber cosponsors are Senator Huffman and Senator Nichols.

Few legitimate government actions are more invasive to the rights of citizens than eminent domain, so it is imperative that the process be focused on protecting property rights, this most basic of all human rights. County courts of law in Texas have had exclusive access for eminent domain proceedings for decades in counties that have county courts of law. This has allowed county courts at law to develop the expertise and the resources to fairly adjudicate disputes over the exercise of eminent domain by governments and private entities. In Harris County, these cases are handled by the county courts at law in a timely fashion with no backlogs or unnecessary delays. There are no significant issues that need to be addressed that would support the passage of HB 2536.

However, the change made by HB 2536 presents some potential due process challenges that could inhibit individual liberty and negatively affect private property rights. By giving condemnors the exclusive right to determine which venue a case over $200,000 is filed in, either county courts at law or district courts, it allows condemnors to engage in forum shopping in which they can seek the court most beneficial to their case. Texas has a long history of passing legislation to eliminate plaintiffs from seeking advantages through forum shopping. Absent any compelling reason for allowing districts courts to hear eminent domain cases, now is not the time to reverse direction on this issue. Similarly, granting the ability to choose the venue exclusively to the plaintiff condemnors with no ability by property owners to challenge also puts property owners at a disadvantage in ensuring due  process and protecting their private property.

Because this legislation would violate our private property and individual liberty principles, we oppose HB 2536.


Source URL (retrieved on 03/29/2024 05:03 AM): http://reports.texasaction.com/bill/84r/hb2536?print_view=true