Thursday, October 29, 2009
BS Alert by Brett Narloch
Issue: Property Rights
A recent Bismarck Tribune article (Dorgan says provision protects property owners – October 29, 2009) mentions Sen. Byron Dorgan’s amendment to an appropriations bill that he claims will protect property rights. If you have been following this story with the NDPC, then you know that that is simply not the case.
Here is what I wrote about the Dorgan amendment several weeks ago:
The NDPC has noted that the real teeth of NHAs are the federal dollars that accompany the designation, not whether someone’s land is in the official boundaries of the area. The NPNHA is eligible for $10 million from the federal government. The Northern Plains Heritage Foundation will also be bolstered by matching funds provided by the state and local governments, presumably. That money can then be used to influence local land use policies… Of course, landowners are unable to opt-out of county or municipal comprehensive land use plans.
Getting opt-in and opt-out language into the law is a political victory for NHA opponents. The NDPC has recommended what changes should have been made to the appropriations bill. On a practical level, there is still a lot of work for property rights advocates to do.
Property owners need to be aware that regardless of whether or not landowners have to opt into the system or have the ability to opt-out at any time, they must realize that landowners cannot opt out of county comprehensive plans or any other local government land use plan. The $10 million the Northern Plains Heritage Foundation will receive from the federal government can be given to other groups to lobby local government for more restrictive land use policies. The NDPC has already shown that these types of things are happening in National Heritage Areas all across the country.
Dorgan’s amendment is more about saving his own tail than trying to actually protect property rights. He has felt a lot of push back on this issue, from the North Dakota Policy Council, North Dakota Farm Bureau, Landowners Association of North Dakota, Scott Hennen’s radio show, SayAnything Blog, and – most importantly – landowners in the area. He won’t be at county commission meetings advocating against more restrictive land use policies. Tracy Potter certainly won’t be, either. Perpetuating the myth that a National Heritage Area somehow protects property rights is BS.
