The Property Clause
• Kleppe v. New Mexico
• United States v. Gardner
• Minnesota v. Block
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
Federal Land Policy and Management Act
• Ended historic practice of free and
easy access to federal lands.
• Must obtain right-of-way/permit for
non-casual use. 43 U.S.C. § 1761.
• Subject to “valid existing rights”
(VERs). 43 U.S.C. §§ 1701 (a) & (h)
and 1769(a).
• Rights-of-way are for limited
purposes and of limited duration. 43
U.S.C. § 1764(b).
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
1
FLPMA cont’d
• Holders to pay fair market value. 43
U.S.C. § 1764(g).
• Right-of-way contains conditions to
“minimize damage to scenic and
aesthetic values in fish and wildlife
habitat and otherwise protect the
environment”. 43 U.S.C. § 1765(a)(ii).
• Preference for right-of-way
“corridors” to “minimize adverse
environmental impacts and the
proliferation of separate rights-ofway”. 43 U.S.C. § 1763.
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
Sierra Club v. Hodel,
848 F.2d 1068 (1988), p. 161.
The
Burr
Trail
R.S. 2477
(Revised Statutes)
The right of way for the construction of
highways over public lands, not
reserved for public uses, is hereby
granted.
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
2
Sierra Club v. Hodel cont’d
Scope of the Right-of-Way
• According to the BLM and the
County, the scope of the right-ofway should be measured by—
• “the baseline is the historical
extent of use”, i.e., then and now
and
• the right to deviate from the
beaten path when “reasonable
and necessary” to meet the
exigencies of increased travel.
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
Sierra Club v. Hodel cont’d
Scope of the Right-of-Way Cont’d
•
The Sierra Club argues that the
scope should be construed under
an “actual construction” standard.
•
Does “reasonable and necessary”
standard violate FLPMA’s policy of
“freezing” rights at their 1976 width
when R.S. 2477 was repealed?
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
3
The Property Clause
U.S. Const., Art. IV, § 3, cl. 2
“[t]he Congress shall have Power to
dispose of and make all needful Rules
and Regulations respecting the
Territory or other Property belonging
to the United States.”
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
Kleppe v. New Mexico,
426 U.S. 529 (1976), p. 184
The Property Clause
• Wild Free-Roaming Horses and
Burros Act
• Scope of authority
• Enclave clause
• Division of authority
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
4
Ceding Jurisdiction to the
United States
•
Nevada ceded general jurisdiction of the
Lake Mead National Recreation Area
(NRA) because it didn’t want to bear the
cost of policing the grounds.
Lake Mead National
•
The NRA is almost 1.5 million acres in
size and the 2003 budget was
approximately $14.2 million.
•
A few years later, as part of the
“Sagebrush Rebellion”, Nevada passed a
state law claiming ownership and
jurisdiction over all BLM-managed federal
land in the state.
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Recreation Area
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
United States v. Gardner,
107 F.3d 1314 (9th Cir. 1997), p. 194
Sagebrush Rebellion
• U.S. Title to Federal Land in Nevada
• The Equal Footing Doctrine
• Nevada’s “Disclaimer Clause”
• The Tenth Amendment
Humboldt-Toiyabe
National Forest
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
5
Minnesota v. Block,
680 F.2d 1240 (1981), p. 199
The Property Clause on Non-federal Land
• Section 4 of the Boundary Waters
Canoe Area Wilderness Act of 1978
• Open question from Kleppe
• “necessary incident”
Boundary Waters Canoe
Area Wilderness
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
Minnesota v. Block cont’d
The Property Clause on Non-federal
Land Cont’d
•
Power to regulate activities on state
land?
•
Note 5: billboards, noise, filling of
isolated wetlands, hunting
migrating animals?
Boundary Waters Canoe
Area Wilderness
U N I V E R S I T Y of H O U S T O N
Professor Marcilynn A. Burke
Copyright©2005 Marcilynn A. Burke
All rights reserved. Provided for student use only.
6