An amendment to the Virginia constitution that would make it more difficult for the government to take private property for public use — a perennial pet quest for statehouse Republicans — narrowly cleared a Senate committee Tuesday, paving the way for a full floor vote.
The proposed amendment would tighten the state’s eminent domain law and more specifically define when private lands can be taken for public use.
The amendment sailed through the Republican-controlled House of Delegates, but squeaked through the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections on an 8-7 vote. Two Democratic senators – Creigh Deeds of Bath, and Phillip Puckett of Bland – crossed over and voted for the measure.
Chap Petersen, D-Fairfax, who opposed the amendment, said it was a “solution that’s in search of a problem.”
“If you’re not getting [adequate compensation] under the current eminent domain laws, you don’t need a new law, you need a new lawyer,” he said. “I think there’s going to be a floor battle on it – you can expect that.”
