One of the first bills introduced in the newly convened North
Carolina State Legislature seeks to limit condemnation
powers. House Bill 3, seeks to amend the North Carolina State
Constitution to ban the use of eminent domain for private
use. Specifically, House Bill 3 seeks to amend N.C.G.S. 40A-3
to limit takings by "private condemnors" to those for
"public use" only, a change from the current
"private condemnor" power to take for "public use or
benefit". However, it also adds takings by "private
condemnors" for the construction of "facilities related
to the distribution of natural gas" to the list of permitted
takings.
NC is one of the few states that did not pass legislation in the
wake of the 2005 US Supreme Court Kelo case. That case held
that a condemnation for economic development satisfied the US
constitutional "public purpose" requirement even if a
private entity would ultimately own the condemned property.
The Kelo Court stated, however, that it was
