[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 992 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 992

                     To end the Tucker Act shuffle.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 6, 1997

Mr. Smith of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                     the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
                     To end the Tucker Act shuffle.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Tucker Act Shuffle Relief Act of 
1997''.

SEC. 2. JURISDICTION AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.

    (a) In General.--A property owner may file a civil action under 
this Act to challenge the validity of any agency action that adversely 
affects the owner's interest in private property in either the United 
States District Court or the United States Court of Federal Claims. 
This section constitutes express waiver of the sovereign immunity of 
the United States. Notwithstanding any other provision of law and 
notwithstanding the issues involved, the relief sought, or the amount 
in controversy, each court shall have concurrent jurisdiction over both 
claims for monetary relief and claims seeking invalidation of any Act 
of Congress or any regulation of an agency as defined under this Act 
affecting private property rights. The plaintiff shall have the 
election of the court in which to file a claim for relief.
    (b) Standing.--Persons adversely affected by an agency action taken 
under this Act shall have standing to challenge and seek judicial 
review of that action.
    (c) Amendments to Title 28, United States Code.--(1) Section 
1491(a) of title 28, United States Code, is amended--
            (A) in paragraph (1) by amending the first sentence to read 
        as follows: ``The United States Court of Federal Claims shall 
        have jurisdiction to render judgment upon any claim against the 
        United States for monetary relief founded either upon the 
        Constitution or any Act of Congress or any regulation of an 
        executive department, or upon any express or implied contract 
        with the United States, in cases not sounding in tort, or for 
        invalidation of any Act of Congress or any regulation of an 
        executive department that adversely affects private property 
        rights in violation of the fifth amendment of the United States 
        Constitution'';
            (B) in paragraph (2) by inserting before the first sentence 
        the following: ``In any case within its jurisdiction, the Court 
        of Federal Claims shall have the power to grant injunctive and 
        declaratory relief when appropriate.''; and
            (C) by adding at the end thereof the following new 
        paragraphs:
            ``(4) In cases otherwise within its jurisdiction, the Court 
        of Federal Claims shall also have ancillary jurisdiction, 
        concurrent with the courts designated in section 1346(b) of 
        this title, to render judgment upon any related tort claim 
        authorized under section 2674 of this title.
            ``(5) In proceedings within the jurisdiction of the Court 
        of Federal Claims which constitute judicial review of agency 
        action (rather than de novo proceedings), the provisions of 
        section 706 of title 5 shall apply.''.
    (2)(A) Section 1500 of title 28, United States Code, is repealed.
    (B) The table of sections for chapter 91 of title 28, United States 
Code, is amended by striking out the item relating to section 1500.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act, the term--
            (1) ``agency'' means a department, agency, independent 
        agency, or instrumentality of the United States, including any 
        military department, Government corporation, Government-
        controlled corporation, or other establishment in the executive 
        branch of the United States Government;
            (2) ``agency action'' means any action or decision taken by 
        an agency that--
                    (A) takes a property right; or
                    (B) unreasonably impedes the use of property or the 
                exercise of property interests or significantly 
                interferes with investment-backed expectations;
            (3) ``owner'' means the owner or possessor of property or 
        rights in property at the time the taking occurs, including 
        when--
                    (A) the statute, regulation, rule, order, 
                guideline, policy, or action is passed or promulgated; 
                or
                    (B) the permit, license, authorization, or 
                governmental permission is denied or suspended;
            (4) ``private property'' or ``property'' means all property 
        protected under the fifth amendment to the Constitution of the 
        United States, any applicable Federal or State law, or this 
        Act, and includes--
                    (A) real property, whether vested or unvested, 
                including--
                            (i) estates in fee, life estates, estates 
                        for years, or otherwise;
                            (ii) inchoate interests in real property 
                        such as remainders and future interests;
                            (iii) personalty that is affixed to or 
                        appurtenant to real property;
                            (iv) easements;
                            (v) leaseholds;
                            (vi) recorded liens; and
                            (vii) contracts or other security interests 
                        in, or related to, real property;
                    (B) the right to use water or the right to receive 
                water, including any recorded lines on such water 
                right;
                    (C) rents, issues, and profits of land, including 
                minerals, timber, fodder, crops, oil and gas, coal, or 
                geothermal energy;
                    (D) property rights provided by, or memorialized 
                in, a contract, except that such rights shall not be 
                construed under this title to prevent the United States 
                from prohibiting the formation of contracts deemed to 
                harm the public welfare or to prevent the execution of 
                contracts for--
                            (i) national security reasons; or
                            (ii) exigencies that present immediate or 
                        reasonably foreseeable threats or injuries to 
                        life or property;
                    (E) any interest defined as property under State 
                law; or
                    (F) any interest understood to be property based on 
                custom, usage, common law, or mutually reinforcing 
                understandings sufficiently well-grounded in law to 
                back a claim of interest; and
            (5) ``State agency'' means any State department, agency, 
        political subdivision, or instrumentality that--
                    (A) carries out or enforces a regulatory program 
                required under Federal law;
                    (B) is delegated administrative or substantive 
                responsibility under a Federal regulatory program; or
                    (C) receives Federal funds in connection with a 
                regulatory program established by a State pursuant to a 
                Federal requirement,
        if the State enforcement of the regulatory program, or the 
        receipt of Federal funds in connection with a regulatory 
        program established by a State, is directly related to the 
        taking of private property seeking to be vindicated under this 
        Act.

SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The provisions of this Act and amendments made by this Act shall 
take effect upon enactment.
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