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TIBA (Topeka Independent Business Association, www.topekaiba.org) has polled its members and prospective members about the proposed eminent domain legislation. Here are the results of the survey.
1. Please choose the one answer that most closely reflects your feelings about the issue of eminent domain. n=18 | | Percent | Number | | | Private property should never be taken by the government under any circumstances. | 5.6 | 1 | | | I believe the Constitution is clear: the use of eminent domain must be restricted to those times when the acquired property will be used by the entire community, such as public schools, utilities, and streets. | 50.0 | 9 | | | I believe that eminent domain may be used to acquire privately-held property for uses which are clearly public, such as roads and sewers. In addition, there may be acceptable uses of eminent domain for economic development, but the Legislature must make these uses very narrow and difficult to implement. | 22.2 | 4 | | | I believe the Constitution can be interpreted to mean that eminent domain may be used to acquire privately-owned property for a variety of reasons if the new use of the property will benefit all or most of the community. | 22.2 | 4 | | | Privately-owned property should be shared by all. Our elected officials, representing the entire community, are in the best position to decide on the best use for all property | 0.0 | 0 | | | Other | 0.0 | 0 | |
2. What other comments do you have on the issue of eminent domain? The way you stated your answers makes it difficult to select any of the last 3. One has to ask will College Hill be better after eminent domain than before? There is no question it will! Private property rights are one of the most basic and important guarantees provided by the Constitution. Even when property is taken for public use, it should be a very difficult process. The law last year by Kansas was too limiting on government. If eminent domain is needed, property value should be based ABOVE fair market value. 3. How many full-time employees does your business have? n=18 | | Percent | Number | | 1-5 | 27.8 | 5 | | 6-10 | 22.2 | 4 | | 11-50 | 38.9 | 7 | | More than 50 | 11.1 | 2 | | Prefer not to answer | 0.0 | 0 |
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