As Oklahoma legislators grapple with several eminent domain bills this year, a similar effort is underway in the Kansas legislature where a state Representative filed a bill to reform and limit the use of eminent domain.
Rep. Brett Fairchild of St. John, Kansas filed HB2187 and said the measure was in response to concerns from voters in his district, “particularly in regards to transmission lines.”
“This bill doesn’t specifically mention transmission lines, but it simply seeks to reform eminent domain and limit it as much as possible.”
Under his bill, any government agency that makes an initial offer under eminent domain, cannot reduce the offer.
In a Facebook post, the Representative explained, “The bill raises the legal standard that the government is required to use when using eminent domain by requiring them to provide clear and convincing evidence before they can use eminent domain. There is currently no such language in Kansas Statute which requires government agencies to apply this standard in order to use eminent domain. Hopefully, this provision will help make the use of eminent domain more rare.”
His bill also prohibits the use of eminent domain for economic development reasons.