Eminent Domain Report

As we reported last month, the United States of America and the Federal Aviation Administration had filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the City of Santa Monica in federal court seeking to confirm its alleged right to control the fate of the Santa Monica Airport.  Yesterday, the federal court threw out the City's lawsuit, holding that:

• The Quiet Title Claim was time-barred;
• The takings claim had to be brought before the United States Court of Federal Claims pursuant to the Tucker Act; and
• The Tenth Amendment and Fifth Amendment Due Process Claims were not ripe.  

The federal court ...

On July 6, 2012 President Obama signed into law MAP-21, which, among other things, contained new National Environmental Policy Act ("NEPA") requirements for the Federal Transit Administration ("FTA") and Federal Highway Administration ("FHWA").  Earlier this month, pursuant to a mandate in MAP-21, FTA and FHWA adopted new regulations governing the implementation of two new categorical exclusions.  The two new categorical exclusions apply to (1) projects within an existing right-of-way, and (2) projects receiving limited Federal funding.  

NEPA is the ...

On October 31, 2013, the City of Santa Monica filed a complaint in federal court against the United States of America and the Federal Aviation Administration ("FAA") with the hope of confirming its alleged right to control the fate of the Santa Monica Airport.  Both sides agree that:  (i) the City leased the airport property to the United States in 1941 to support the war effort, (ii) the United States made substantial improvements to the property, (iii) the United States terminated the lease in 1948, (iv) the 1948 instrument terminating the lease contained a reversionary clause, and ...

As reported earlier today by a number of news outlets (see for example this KCET article by Chris Clarke), the Bureau of Land Management ("BLM") will be issuing a Final Rule to facilitate right-of-way applications for lands with wind and solar energy development potential.  As explained in the press release issued by the BLM, in the past

"lands included in a proposed right-of-way [would] remain open to the location and entry of mining claims while the BLM" considered the application.

However, the Final Rule, which will be published in the Federal Register, permits the BLM to temporarily ...