Eminent domain has long been a worry for many who own real estate. While the majority of landowners will never be affected by it, it only takes one eminent domain order to seize your land and upset your world.
Unfortunately, Tennessee has some of the weakest protections for landowners with regard to eminent domain. So it will please many to know about a new piece of legislation that strengthens their rights.
Earlier this year, Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill known as the Property Rights Protection Act (HB 444/SB 480), which Governor Lee then signed into law in April. Here is what it means.
Defining blighted
Many feel developers take advantage of natural disasters, such as Hurricane Helene, to push the boundaries of eminent domain law too far. They made moves on land they coveted in areas where damage had occurred. They often succeeded and took people’s property from them through an eminent domain purchase, even when there was nothing wrong with that property. The word that allowed them to do this was “blighted.”
Normally, eminent domain purchases can only occur for projects that are in the public interest. However, until the new bill became law, the states’ eminent domain laws gave private developers who just wanted to turn a profit a loophole to grab land in “blighted areas,” which was applied to many parts that were damaged in the Hurricane.
The Property Rights Protection Act has now made it clear that “blighted’ should not apply to the whole area when it comes to eminent domain, but to a particular property. Those whose properties are still fine should no longer have to fear that a developer can try and take their real estate from them.
Of course, it does not mean developers won’t continue trying to see what they can get away with. Legal assistance could be crucial for anyone who fears their property is threatened.