Eminent Domain Is Eminently Immoral

The recent Supreme Court decision in Kelo v. City of New London, which extended the government's power to force individuals to sell their property against their better judgment, represents an egregious violation of individual rights.

Morally, the greatness of the American system lies in recognizing the inalienable right of each and every individual to his life, his property, and the pursuit of his happiness. If someone does not wish to sell his property, it is criminal to force him to do so. Just as it is a crime for a burglar to seize your television set even if he leaves behind a $20 bill and declares that that represents "fair compensation," so it should be a crime for the government to do so.

In a free society, the terms on which a man sells his property are his to determine, not the government's. The converse view is based on the idea that a man's life and property belong to the state--and has no legitimate place in America.

The upshot of the Kelo decision will be that many more individuals will be forced off the land on which they wish to continue living, so that local governments can eagerly expand their tax revenues.

A government moving toward dictatorship usually does so by seizing more and more control over its citizens' property.

--Dr. Andrew Bernstein,
Ayn Rand Institute

Six More Years of Patch and Pray

The American Society of Civil Engineers commends congressional leaders for reaching a final agreement on the Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users. The long overdue legislation will provide $286.5 billion over six years to maintain the nation's overburdened transportation infrastructure.

However, this funding level fails to meet the long-term investment required to support a healthy economy and population, continuing the ineffective 'patch and pray' mentality.

As outlined in ASCE's 2005 Report Card for America's Infrastructure and reported in the Federal Highway Administration's 2002 Conditions and Performance Report, an
Investment of $375 billion over the same period of time is required to address America's growing congestion and highway safety problems, and curb the increasing economic cost of a crumbling infrastructure. Once again, Congress is shortchanging one of America's most valuable assets our national infrastructure!

On March 9, ASCE released its 2005 Report Card, examining trends and assessing the progress and decline of America's infrastructure. The report concluded that the condition of our bridges has remained the same--a grade of C--while our roads and mass transit systems continued to decline--from a D+ to D for roads and C- to D+ for transit.

While the bill falls short of providing the needed funding, certain provisions will help address our nation's looming infrastructure crisis. Changes in the environmental review process will speed up the design and construction of
transportation projects while protecting the environment. Congress also renewed the budgetary firewalls which will guarantee that user-fee revenue in the highway trust fund will be used for transportation purposes. The legislation also provides for a robust highway research program to produce longer lasting materials, improved construction techniques and improved safety.

Finally, the legislation creates a commission to address the funding crisis facing our nation's surface transportation program and we look forward to participating in the efforts to find long-term solutions.

--William P. Henry, P.E., FASCE, is president of the American Society of Civil Engineers. ASCE represents more than 137,000 civil engineers worldwide.