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Committee asks Law Institute to study expropriation after recent Supreme Court decision and carbon capture concerns
Summary
Representative Owen asked the Law Institute to study whether Louisiana’s expropriation statutes and constitution align following a recent state Supreme Court ruling (Nguyen v. Plaquemines Parish); he asked the study be broad to examine procedures, purposes and whether statutory exceptions (including for carbon capture) remain appropriate.
House Concurrent Resolution 61 was presented to the House Civil Law Committee requesting a Law Institute study of expropriation law, with particular attention to issues raised by carbon capture projects and a recent Louisiana Supreme Court ruling.
Representative Owen told the committee the resolution is intended to sort an apparent conflict: a 2006 constitutional amendment emphasized private property protections, while later statutory language created an exception for expropriation related to carbon sequestration. "We may need to do that between here and the floor," Owen said, noting a state Supreme Court decision in Nguyen v. Plaquemines Parish has highlighted the inconsistency. He said he asked the attorney general’s office for guidance but was referred to an independent study by the Law Institute to provide a neutral assessment.
Representative Glorioso urged broadening the scope to analyze both the expropriation procedures and the purposes for which the State currently authorizes taking property. Owen agreed to work with members to modify language before floor consideration. The resolution was reported favorably.
The Law Institute is being asked to examine current practices, potential conflicts between statute and constitutional language, and whether procedural safeguards and permitted purposes for expropriation require revision.
