by Rick Fontes

Created on: July 13, 2010

Recently the Governor of Utah, Gary Herbert, signed legislation calling for the state to take control of land claimed by the Federal Government, through the process known as 'eminent domain'.  The reasons for him wanting to do this are many and varied but also, in my view, unnecessary.  The Constitution of the United States does not allow the Federal Government to own land, or other real estate properties, outside of those described in article one, section eight, of the United States Constitution, known as the 'Enumerated Powers' clause.  

This clause is short, clear and quite unambiguous.  In its entirety it reads: (The Congress shall have power) To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such a district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of government of all the United States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of Congress and the Legislature of the State in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock-yards and other needful buildings.

The acquisition and ownership of land by the Federal Government is not addressed anywhere else in the Constitution.

Thomas Jefferson was faced with this problem when he brokered the Louisiana Purchase.  It is clear from his writings, and from the fact that he felt it necessary to draft a constitutional amendment to allow the government to acquire land, that he felt such actions were outside the bounds of Federal authority.

The amendment was never presented to the states for ratification because Jefferson feared the process would be too time consuming and would give other interested parties a chance to interfere with the deal that he had arranged with Napoleon.  The outcome was that the Louisiana Purchase was carried out without Constitutional authority and the United States gained the de facto ability to acquire more land in this fashion.

At present the Federal Government claims ownership of more than six hundred million acres in the United States.  That constitutes over thirty percent of the entire land mass of the country.  

The Government's right to acquire, hold and administer land has been tested in court and has been judged to be legal under article four, section three, of the Constitution.  The pertinent clause reads as follows:  The Congress shall have the power to dispose of and make all needful

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