Senate committee hears bill to bar eminent domain for recreational trails

The Senate General Government Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 361, a proposal to prohibit the use of eminent domain to acquire land for recreational trails.

Senator Schaeffer, identified on the meeting agenda as the bill sponsor, was invited to testify and to answer questions about the scope of the measure. Senator Mora asked whether the bill as written would prevent local governments and engineers from taking property adjacent to roadways to install safety-related bike or pedestrian facilities. "The intent of the bill as well as the wording I see on lines 45 to 48 strictly indicate that it’s for recreational type activities or active type trails," the sponsor said, adding the bill was not intended to affect right-of-way work for public-safety improvements and offering to work with the committee on clarifying language if needed.

The exchange left the committee with a clearer statement of legislative intent but without an amendment adopted during the hearing. The Chair concluded the first hearing on SB361 after those clarifications. No vote or formal committee action was recorded on SB361 during this meeting.

What’s next: The committee may seek clarifying language or an amendment in future sessions to explicitly exempt safety-related right-of-way work if members want that assurance on the bill’s face.