At the 139th Annual National Grange Convention last week, about 200 postcards were collected to support legislation, H.R. 4128, which will allow Congress to withhold federal funds to prohibit states and localities from receiving federal economic development funds for 2 years if they abuse the power of eminent domain. State Grange Delegates and other convention participants wrote the postcards to their U.S. Senators who now are discussing the bill. On November 3, the U.S. House passed the legislation by a margin of 376-38.
The National Grange adopted the following statements during the 2005 convention as a new Grange policy which is in line with H.R. 4128.
- The National Grange supports legislation to prohibit the federal government or any agency or authority of the federal government to exercise its power of eminent domain to be used for private economic development.
- The National Grange supports federal legislation to require that no state, political subdivision of a state or any person or entity to which such power has been delegated shall exercise its power of eminent domain, for the purpose of private economic development or over property that is subsequently used for economic development. Any State or political subdivision that exercises the power of eminent domain for private economic development shall be ineligible for any federal economic development funds for any purpose for a period of at least two years.
- Prohibitions on the use of the exercise of the power of eminent domain by federal, state and local governments shall not apply to situations of immediate danger to the health and/or safety of citizens.
Action Needed
Please send a postcard to your U.S. Senators to ask to co-sponsor H.R. 4128.
Please copy or rephrase the sample message below on your own hand-written post card or please click Postcard Front / Postcard Back to download a postcard and print it on #8387 postcard sheet.
If you need any assistance to join this postcard program, please contact National Grange Legislative Department at 1-888-447-2643 (x109) or at chwang@nationalgrange.org
Postcard Front / Postcard Back
Dear Sen. ____________:
I am writing to ask you to co-sponsor the Private Property Rights Protection Act of 2005 , H.R. 4128, which recently passed the House to withhold federal funds for any government using eminent domain to seize private property for purposes of economic development. The bill specifically states that Congress should protect the property rights of rural Americans. As a member of the nation’s oldest family farmers advocacy organization, National Grange, I urge you to know our farms of many generations are now in jeopardy of being taken for private gain. Please help stop abuses of eminent domain to protect our farmland!
Sincerely,
(Signature)
(Name)__________________________
(Grange name and number) __________________________ |
If you have any questions or comments please contact Legislative Research Analyst Chil-Sook Hwang by e-mail: chwang@nationalgrange.org by fax: 202-347-1091 or by phone: 1-888-4GRANGE, ext 109.
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Thank you for your grassroots participation in the National Grange Legislative program. |
