Land grab must be stopped!!!
Federal and state governments alone already own more than 40 percent of the land in the United States
From, The Kentucky Citizen Digest, January/February, 2001.

Though most Americans enjoy the quiet refreshment of walking in a national park on a  sunny day, many people would not choose to donate their own property for such a purpose.  In a recent legislation proposal The Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA) or House Resolution 701, the private property of citizens across the country may be in jeopardy.

CARA appears benign because of its intention to preserve green space but in reality it saves land in a fiscally irresponsible way while depriving citizens of their property rights.  If implemented, a trust fund of $42 billion dollars would be established for land acquisition purposes to be distributed among the fifty states with a matching contribution requirement. CARA’s  federal money is diverted from oil royalties over the course of 15 years—seemingly innocent.  Yet, the legislation is vague as to the origin of the matching state funds and  the government is already more than $12 billion short necessary maintance funds for land currently owned.  This leaves many wondering if the money will come from the  taxpayer pocketbook.    In addition to this potential strain on taxpayers, another factor must be understood.  Government land is free from property tax.  Thus, any land bought by the government means less money coming to the government in property taxes, thereby decreasing the current tax base.  One may expect that the taxpayer will make up these funds in tax increases, in order that the United States does not go further into deficit.

Not only does HR 701 have citizens clutching their wallets and staking their land, citizens should be wary of how CARA’s trust fund may be spent.  CARA directly apportions some money to extreme environmental groups, indirectly freeing resources for lobbying.  Adding insult to injury, these groups often oppose using  land for hunting, recreation or development, leaving little use for citizens.  To some, this parallels the transfer of federal funds to Planned Parenthood under the guise of “family planning,” but which  ultimately advanced their radical pro-abortion agenda.

More significant than the authorized waste of land or the  inefficient use of money is the taking of land currently owned by citizens.  Under HR 701, land will be purchased by the government from “willing sellers” at a fair market value.  However, some of the terms are not as innocuous as they  would seem.   A “willing seller” is not simply a person who desires to sell, but it can also be a person whose land acquisition was approved by an Act of Congress.  Though this sounds rare, these proportionately small items of business are often tacked on larger pieces of legislation in the form of a “rider.”  Thus, when the controversial issue is passed, the land acquisition rider is overlooked and uncontemplated. Thus, the “willing seller” is not willing, but forced.

Another seemingly innocent concept  is that the property owner will receive just compensation.  Although this is technically true, the price paid is determined by the current market value of the land.  However, once the government has determined to buy the land, the value of the land significantly drops—thus lowering the price given to the “willing seller.”

H.R. 701 has passed through the House and is pending a vote on the Senate floor.    Because on the face of it, CARA appears to be a positive step for legislators to take to preserve wildlife, your legislator needs to be clear about the underlying issues.
 
 

Key Family Foundation Contacts: Kent Ostrander, Executive Director Martin Cothran, Senior Associate Policy Analyst