[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 926 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 926

 To prohibit the provision of Federal economic development assistance 
 for any State or locality that uses the power of eminent domain power 
to obtain property for private commercial development or that fails to 
   pay relocation costs to persons displaced by use of the power of 
           eminent domain for economic development purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 8, 2007

  Ms. Herseth (for herself, Mr. Goodlatte, Mr. Boyd of Florida, Mrs. 
 Drake, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr. Lucas, Mr. King of Iowa, 
Mr. Kucinich, and Ms. Waters) introduced the following bill; which was 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the 
 Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, Financial Services, 
    Natural Resources, and Education and Labor, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To prohibit the provision of Federal economic development assistance 
 for any State or locality that uses the power of eminent domain power 
to obtain property for private commercial development or that fails to 
   pay relocation costs to persons displaced by use of the power of 
           eminent domain for economic development purposes.

    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 ``Strengthening the Ownership of 
Private Property Act of 2007'' or the ``STOPP Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. CONDITIONS OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE UNDER FEDERAL ECONOMIC 
              DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS.

    (a) Prohibition of Assistance.--
            (1) Prohibition.--If, after the date of the enactment of 
        this Act, an entity using the power of a State engages in any 
        conduct described in subsection (b), no officer or employee of 
        the Federal Government having responsibility over Federal 
        financial assistance under any Federal economic development 
        program shall make such assistance available to the relevant 
        entity during the period described in paragraph (3).
            (2) Entity to which assistance is prohibited.--In this 
        subsection, the term ``relevant entity'' means--
                    (A) the entity engaging in the conduct described in 
                subsection (b), if that entity is a State or a unit of 
                general local government of a State; and
                    (B) the State or unit of general local government 
                that gave authority for the entity to engage in that 
                conduct, in any other case.
            (3) Duration of prohibition.--The period referred to in 
        paragraph (1) is the period that begins on the date the officer 
        or employee of the Federal Government having responsibility 
        over Federal financial assistance under the Federal economic 
        development program determines that the relevant entity has 
        engaged in the conduct described in subsection (b) and ends 
        with the earlier of--
                    (A) the day that is two years after the date the 
                period began; or
                    (B) the day that the property is returned to the 
                entity from whom the property was taken.
    (b) Conduct Resulting in Prohibition of Assistance.--The conduct 
referred to in subsection (a) is the following:
            (1) Use of eminent domain to take private property and 
        transfer to a private entity.--Any use of the power of eminent 
        domain to take property from a private entity and transfer the 
        ownership of, or a leasehold interest, in the property (or a 
        portion thereof) to another private entity, except for a 
        transfer--
                    (A) for use by a public utility;
                    (B) for a road or other right of way or means, open 
                to the public or common carriers, for transportation;
                    (C) for an aqueduct, pipeline, or similar use;
                    (D) for a prison or hospital; or
                    (E) for any use during and in relation to a 
                national emergency or national disaster declared by the 
                President under other law.
            (2) Failure to provide relocation assistance for persons 
        displaced by use of eminent domain for economic development.--
        Failing to provide, to any person displaced from property by 
        the use of the power of eminent domain for any economic 
        development purpose, relocation assistance under the Uniform 
        Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies 
        Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4601 et seq.) in the same manner and to 
        the same extent as relocation assistance would be required 
        under such Act to be provided by a Federal agency that 
        undertakes a program or project that results in displacement of 
        the person.

SEC. 3. PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.

    The owner of any real property taken by conduct resulting in the 
prohibition by this Act of assistance may, in a civil action, obtain 
injunctive and declaratory relief to require the enforcement of that 
prohibition.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Federal economic development program.--The term 
        ``Federal economic development program'' means any of the 
        following programs:
                    (A) Department of agriculture.--
                            (i) Forest service.--
                                    (I) Programs under the National 
                                Forest-Dependent Rural Communities 
                                Economic Diversification Act of 1990 (7 
                                U.S.C. 6611 et seq.).
                                    (II) The rural development through 
                                forestry program authorized by the 
                                Department of the Interior and Related 
                                Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 
                                (Public Law 109-54; 119 Stat. 538), and 
                                subsequent appropriations laws.
                            (ii) Rural business--cooperative service.--
                                    (I) The intermediary relending 
                                program under section 1323 of the Food 
                                Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 1932 
                                note).
                                    (II) The rural business 
                                opportunities grant program under 
                                section 306(a)(11) of the Consolidated 
                                Farm and Rural Development Act (7 
                                U.S.C. 1926(a)(11)).
                                    (III) The program for assistance to 
                                cooperatives for economic development 
                                under the Act of July 2, 1926 (7 U.S.C. 
                                451 et seq.) and subtitle A of the 
                                Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 
                                U.S.C. 1621 et seq.).
                                    (IV) The rural business enterprise 
                                grants program under section 310B(c) of 
                                the Consolidated Farm and Rural 
                                Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1932(c)).
                                    (V) The rural economic development 
                                loans and grants program under title 
                                III of the Rural Electrification Act of 
                                1936 (7 U.S.C. 930 et seq.).
                            (iii) Rural utilities service.--
                                    (I) The program for grants, direct 
                                loans, and guaranteed loans for water 
                                and waste disposal systems for rural 
                                communities under paragraphs (1) and 
                                (2) of section 306(a) of the 
                                Consolidated Farm and Rural Development 
                                Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)).
                                    (II) The Rural Utilities Service 
                                program for grants and loans to the 
                                Denali Commission under section 
                                19(a)(2) of the Rural Electrification 
                                Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 918a(a)(2)).
                            (iv) Rural housing service.--
                                    (I) The rural community development 
                                initiative pursuant to the Agriculture, 
                                Rural Development, Food and Drug 
                                Administration, and Related Agencies 
                                Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 
                                106-387; 114 Stat. 1549A-17) and the 
                                Agriculture, Rural Development, Food 
                                and Drug Administration, and Related 
                                Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 
                                (Public Law 109-97; 119 Stat. 2136).
                                    (II) The program for loans and 
                                grants for essential community 
                                facilities under section 306(a)(1) of 
                                the Consolidated Farm and Rural 
                                Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)(1)).
                            (v) Farm service agency.--The program for 
                        loans to Indian tribes and tribal corporations 
                        under the Consolidated Farm and Rural 
                        Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1921 et seq.).
                            (vi) Rural business investment program.--
                        The rural business investment program under 
                        subtitle H of the Consolidated Farm and Rural 
                        Development Act (7 U.S.C. 2009cc et seq.).
                    (B) Department of commerce--economic development 
                administration.--Any program for financial assistance 
                under the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 
                1965 (42 U.S.C. 3121 et seq.).
                    (C) Department of housing and urban development.--
                            (i) The community development block grant 
                        programs under title I of the Housing and 
                        Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 
                        5301 et seq.), including the entitlement 
                        grants, small cities, special purpose and 
                        insular areas grants, States, Indian tribe 
                        grants, and loan guarantee programs.
                            (ii) The brownfields economic development 
                        initiative under section 108(q) of the Housing 
                        and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 
                        U.S.C. 5308(q)).
                            (iii) The rural housing and economic 
                        development program of the Department of 
                        Housing and Urban Development pursuant to the 
                        Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban 
                        Development, the Judiciary, the District of 
                        Columbia, and Independent Agencies 
                        Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-115; 
                        119 Stat. 2446) and title II of the Departments 
                        of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban 
                        Development, and Independent Agencies 
                        Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public Law 105-276; 
                        112 Stat. 2475).
                            (iv) The Indian housing block grant program 
                        under the Native American Housing Assistance 
                        and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 
                        4101 et seq.).
                    (D) Department of the interior--bureau of indian 
                affairs.--The programs for grants, loans, and loan 
                guarantees for Indian economic development of the 
                Office of Economic Development, Bureau of Indian 
                Affairs of the Department of the Interior.
                    (E) Department of the treasury.--The community 
                development financial institutions fund program under 
                subtitle A of title I of the Riegle Community 
                Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994 (12 
                U.S.C. 4701 et seq.).
                    (F) Appalachian regional commission.--Any program 
                for assistance for Appalachian regional development 
                under subtitle IV of title 40, United States Code.
                    (G) National credit union administration.--The 
                community development revolving loan fund program for 
                credit unions under the Community Development Credit 
                Union Revolving Loan Fund Transfer Act (42 U.S.C. 9822 
                note).
                    (H) Denali commission.--The Denali Commission 
                program under the Denali Commission Act of 1998 (42 
                U.S.C. 2131 et seq.).
                    (I) Delta regional authority.--The program for 
                Delta regional development under subtitle F of the 
                Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 
                2009aa et seq.).
                    (J) Department of health and human services.--The 
                discretionary award program relating to local community 
                economic development under section 680 of the Community 
                Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9921).
            (2) Federal financial assistance.--The term ``Federal 
        financial assistance'' has the meaning given such term in 
        section 101 of the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real 
        Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4601).
            (3) State.--The term ``State'' means any of the States of 
        the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 
        of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
        Islands, Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and any 
        other territory or possession of the United States.

SEC. 5. SEVERABILITY.

    If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof, is held 
invalid, the validity of the remainder of this Act and the application 
of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall not be 
affected thereby.
                                 <all>