Free Republic

IV. CONCLUSION In sum, we conclude that (1) plaintiffs' claims are justiciable; (2) Measure 37 does not impede the legislative plenary power; (3) Measure 37 does not violate the equal privileges and immunities guarantee of Article I, section 20, of the Oregon Constitution; (4) Measure 37 does not violate the suspension of laws provision contained in Article I, section 22, of the Oregon Constitution; (5) Measure 37 does not violate separation of powers constraints; (6) Measure 37 does not waive impermissibly sovereign immunity; and (7) Measure 37 does not violate the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The trial...

Oregon's Supreme Court has resuscitated the controversial property rights law that could redefine rural Oregon. Measure 37 did not violate state and federal constitutions as a lower court thought, justices said this morning in a sweeping, unanimous opinion. Their decision -- which will be dissected across the nation -- jump-starts more than 2,500 applications to develop land controlled by government regulations.

SALEM, Ore. - A judge on Friday overturned a voter-passed property compensation law as unconstitutional. Marion County Circuit Judge Mary James struck down the law as violating five provisions of the state and federal constitutions. The law, passed as Measure 37 on the November 2004 ballot, requires that state and local governments either compensate land owners when regulations lower property values or waive the rules. James said the statute violates equal protection provisions of the Oregon Constitution and a state constitutional ban on suspending laws. She also ruled it breaches the separation of powers between government branches, "intrudes on" legislative...

Property rights may not draw as many headlines as gay marriage, yet we'd like to draw readers' attention to an important initiative that Oregonians approved last week. The measure is proof that voters can make sensible decisions on even emotional environmental issues. It's also a precedent for land owners that could spread to other states, Measure 37 dealt with the growing abuse of "regulatory takings." These have become a big favorite with environmentalists, who see them as a backdoor way of stopping development even on private land. In Oregon, for instance, regulations have forbidden property owners from cutting down their...