Candidates for governor weigh-in on issue
A proposition banning governments from taking Texans' property for private development is last on the Nov. 3 ballot. But it's getting ample attention from the Republican candidates for governor, farmers and anti-toll road activists.
AUSTIN, TEXAS (AP) -- Supporters of Proposition 11 would ban state government from taking private property and giving it to a private developer to boost the local tax base. Under the proposed language approved the Legislature, property could still be seized if it's used by the government or the public at large or to eliminate "urban blight."
The proposed constitutional amendment also would limit the Legislature's authority in granting eminent domain power in the future.
Proposition 11 is one of 11 on the November ballot. With early voting beginning Monday, Gov. Rick Perry is on the same side as the Texas Farm Bureau and his Republican primary opponent, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, in promoting the proposition. That's even though the Farm Bureau and Perry have been at odds over private property rights relating to Perry's now-dead plan to build a Trans-Texas Corridor toll road across the state.
For Perry, it's a chance to cast himself as a protector of private property before the March primary.
Early voting runs until Oct. 30.
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