« Man, Yards backers in bldg. cam kerfuffle | Main | Follow the Yards money »
October 6, 2006
EMINENT DOMAINIA: New York State
Reuters, NY limits eminent domain use for new power lines
Governor George Pataki signed legislation banning the use of eminent domain to seize private property for the proposed New York Regional Interconnection (NYRI) power line project. His reason:
"The use of eminent domain can have a significant impact on communities, and we must ensure that the legal power to take lands for public benefit is used appropriately," Governor Pataki said in a release.
"Through this law, we will establish additional protections for communities across New York State by prohibiting transmission companies from utilizing eminent domain if a proposed project does not meet designated criteria."
The Albany Times Union, Stores resist eminent domain use
SYRACUSE -- A group of stores is asking the state's highest court to hear their challenge to a development agency's use of eminent domain in the proposed expansion of the Carousel Center into a multibillion dollar megamall.
Macy's, Lord & Taylor, J.C. Penney and seven other stores on Wednesday asked the Court of Appeals in Albany to hear their arguments against the Syracuse Industrial Development Agency's use of eminent domain on behalf of developer Robert Congel to seize some of their lease rights at the mall.
Little Falls Times, Legislature applauds Pataki for signing bill
HERKIMER — The Herkimer County Legislature Wednesday applauded Gov. George Pataki for signing a measure that restricts the use of eminent domain by gas and electric companies to acquire land to build power lines if the line begins and ends within state lines, would increase electric rates anywhere in the state or if a company’s attempt to be designated a national interest electric transmission corridor is rejected.
...
The governor added that it would be “virtually impossible” for New York Regional Interconnect, Inc. to build its proposed power line without use of the power of eminent domain. “You will no longer have to worry about this power line tearing this community apart,” he said.
NY Daily News, Electric bills have you seeing red? Blame Gov. Pataki
Here's why the controversy over the NYRI transmission line never caught on in the NY metro area:
The next time Con Ed rates go through the roof, you should curse Gov. Pataki's name under your breath. And when another heat wave brings another blackout, mutter his name then, too.
That's because Pataki has just sold out the 8 million electric customers of New York City to boost the campaigns of his upstate GOP pals. When the history of his administration is written, this will go down as one of its low points.
Backtracking on his own energy policy and ignoring the pleas of Mayor Bloomberg, Pataki signed legislation Tuesday aimed at blocking construction of a 1,200 megawatt power line from Utica to the northern suburbs of New York City.
The project was designed to pipe electricity from upstate, where it's relatively cheap and plentiful, to the chronically juice-starved Con Ed service area, where residents and businesses pay the highest rates in the continental U.S. - about twice the national average. On top of cutting costs, the new electric lines would also relieve a major bottleneck in the power grid, reducing the chance of blackouts in the future.
For those benefits, taxpayers wouldn't pay a dime. The sponsor, a company called New York Regional Interconnect, is ready to put up $1.6 billion of its own money.
This is exactly the kind of private-sector investment experts had hoped for when Pataki deregulated the electric industry in the mid-1990s.
Posted by lumi at October 6, 2006 7:10 AM