Digital Commons Network^™

What The Cluck? Backyard Chickens And Maine's Mysterious Right To Food, Lucy Weaver

Maine Law Review

When Maine voters approved the nation’s first “right to food” constitutional amendment, many were concerned about the amendment’s potential to conflict with animal welfare, food safety, and other regulations currently in place at the state and local level. Born from a decade of advocacy, the amendment represents a new era for Maine’s food sovereignty movement. However, the boundaries of the amendment remain unclear, and Maine’s municipalities lack sufficient guidance as they attempt to navigate how this amendment applies to them. This Comment explores one example of the many challenges that may arise from the enactment of the right to food …

Commentary: Dan Mandelker—A Land-Use Legacy Unlike Any Other, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

It is an honor to share thoughts about the importance of Professor Daniel Mandelker’s legacy to the field of land-use and zoning law. The word “legacy” means, among other things, “something that is part of your history or that remains from an earlier time.” At ninety-two, he was the longest actively teaching land use law professor in the United States. His academic career began in 1949 when he was appointed an Assistant Professor at Drake Law School, with relatively short stints at the University of Indiana Law School and Columbia Law School, followed by his appointment at Washington University School …

Rethinking The Process Of Service Of Process, Mary K. Bonilla

St. Mary's Law Journal

Even as technology evolves, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, specifically Federal Rule 4, remains stagnate without a mechanism directly providing for electronic service of process in federal courts. Rule 4(e)(1) allows service through the use of state law—consequently permitting any state-approved electronic service methods—so long as the federal court where proceedings will occur, or the place where service is made, is located within the state supplying the law. Accordingly, this Comment explains that Rule 4 indirectly permits electronic service of process in some states, but not others, despite all 50 states utilizing the same federal court system. With states …

Takings Localism, Nestor M. Davisdson, Timothy M. Mulvaney

Faculty Scholarship

Conflicts over “sanctuary” cities, minimum wage laws, and gender-neutral bathrooms have brought the problematic landscape of contemporary state preemption of local governance to national attention. This Article contends that more covert, although equally robust, state interference can be found in property, with significant consequences for our understanding of takings law.

Takings jurisprudence looks to the states to mediate most tensions between individual property rights and community needs, as the takings federalism literature recognizes. Takings challenges, however, often involve local governments. If the doctrine privileges the democratic process to resolve most takings claims, then, that critical process is a largely local …

Who Takes A Dam: Regulatory Confusion And Surging Opportunities For Small Dam Removal In Rural Maine, Grady R. Burns

Maine Law Review

This Comment examines the regulatory regimes surrounding the removal of state-regulated small dams in Maine by comparing the relatively underdeveloped regime in Maine with the much more coherent and robust regime in neighboring New Hampshire. When compared to more deliberate regimes, Maine’s system lacks key features, including a streamlined permitting program and a single clearinghouse for information, resources, and regulatory enforcement. Given the significant opportunities afforded by a coherent regulatory small dam removal regime, this Comment recommends that Maine follow the example of other states by creating a river restoration and dam removal program, re-establishing its statewide dam inventory, creating …

Conservation, Regionality, And The Farm Bill, Jess R. Phelps

Maine Law Review

Over the past several Farm Bills, there has been a somewhat subtle shift in program design to better incorporate regional perspectives/localized areas of conservation concern into national conservation program delivery. The purpose of this Article is to specifically explore the various roles that regional considerations play in existing Farm Bill conservation programs and also consider whether further developments in this direction could result in more flexible program delivery, more effective partnerships, and ultimately, better conservation outcomes. To this end, section II will provide an overview of the history of the Farm Bill, from its origins to the emergence of a …

Skinning The Cat: How Mandatory Psychiatric Evaluations For Animal Cruelty Offenders Can Prevent Future Violence, Ashley Kunz

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

In 2017, the Texas legislature amended Texas Penal Code § 42.092, which governs acts of cruelty against non-livestock animals. The statute in its current form makes torturing, killing, or seriously injuring a non-livestock animal a third degree felony, while less serious offenses carry either a state jail felony or a Class A misdemeanor charge.

While a step in the right direction, Texas law is not comprehensive in that it fails to address a significant aspect of animal cruelty offenses: mental illness. For over fifteen years, Texas Family Code § 54.0407 has required psychiatric counseling for juveniles convicted of cruelty to …

Through The Looking Glass In Indiana: Mandatory Reporting Of Child Abuse And The Duty Of Confidentiality, Alberto Bernabe

Notre Dame Law Review Reflection

This Essay will explain the issue presented by the 2015 Opinion issued by the Legal Ethics Committee of the Indiana State Bar addressing a lawyer's duty to conceal or disclose information regarding sexual abuse of a minor. It will go on to suggest the analysis needed for its proper resolution according to the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct.

Further Developments In Land Use Ethics, Patricia E. Salkin, Darren Stakey

Patricia E. Salkin

Ethical considerations continue to play a fundamental role in shaping the course of land use and developmental regulatory proceedings throughout the country. From an innocuous donation by one public official to his alma mater, to the outright bribery of a former mayor, the past year has been rife with a range of conduct implicating professional responsibility and land use.

Recent Developments In Land Use Ethics, Patricia E. Salkin

Patricia E. Salkin

Current events across the country reveal no shortage of allegations of unethical conduct in the land use review process. Sadly, there are countless other media accounts of alleged and proven conflicts of interest and other ethical misconduct. In this annual review of reported decisions involving ethics in land use, recent decisions are discussed in the hopes that municipal attorneys will use this information as the basis of ongoing training for members of planning boards, zoning boards, and local legislative bodies who must be routinely reminded of not only their legal but ethical responsibilities in upholding the public trust.

Further Developments In Land Use Ethics, Patricia E. Salkin, Darren Stakey

Scholarly Works

Ethical considerations continue to play a fundamental role in shaping the course of land use and developmental regulatory proceedings throughout the country. From an innocuous donation by one public official to his alma mater, to the outright bribery of a former mayor, the past year has been rife with a range of conduct implicating professional responsibility and land use.

Recent Developments In Land Use Ethics, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

Current events across the country reveal no shortage of allegations of unethical conduct in the land use review process. Sadly, there are countless other media accounts of alleged and proven conflicts of interest and other ethical misconduct. In this annual review of reported decisions involving ethics in land use, recent decisions are discussed in the hopes that municipal attorneys will use this information as the basis of ongoing training for members of planning boards, zoning boards, and local legislative bodies who must be routinely reminded of not only their legal but ethical responsibilities in upholding the public trust.

The Quiet Revolution And Federalism: Into The Future, Patricia E. Salkin

Patricia E. Salkin

This Article offers an examination of the federal role in land use planning and regulation set in the context of varying theories of federalism by presenting a historical and modern overview of the increasing federal influence in local land use planning and regulation, specifically highlighting how federal statutes and programs impact local municipal decision making in the area of land use planning. Part II provides a brief introduction into theories of federalism and their application to local land use regulation in the United States. Part III provides a brief overview of federal legislation in the United States which affected local …

Engaging Deliberative Democracy At The Grassroots: Prioritizing The Effects Of The Fiscal Crisis In New York At The Local Government Level, Patricia E. Salkin, Charles Gottlieb

Patricia E. Salkin

Part I of this Article discusses many of the factors contributing to the fiscal crisis at the local level in New York including historic decreases in federal and state revenue sharing, the imposition of a new property tax cap, the failure of New York to address meaningfully the subject of unfunded mandates on local governments, and the dependency of some local jurisdictions on the timely adoption of a state budget. Part II discusses concepts of deliberative democracy and how local residents might be engaged to become partners with local officials in making difficult fiscal decisions that impact all community residents. …

Ethics In Land Use: Using Ethical Allegations As A Sword Rather Than A Shield, Patricia E. Salkin

Patricia E. Salkin

No abstract provided.

Local Government Ethics Programs: A Resource For Ethics Commission Members, Local Officials, Attorneys, Journalists, And Students, And A Manual For Ethics Reform, Robert Wechsler, City Ethics Inc.

AALL Legal Website of the Month

As stated on its website, this book is intended as an introduction to local government ethics for those who want to have a grasp on the various issues involved in government ethics; as a resource for those faced with a specific situation, who want to understand the legal and ethical issues involved, as well as the alternative ways of dealing with the situation; as a guidebook for those involved in government ethics reform; and as a text for students of public administration as well as supplementary reading for local public administrators.

Is Bankruptcy The Answer For Troubled Cities And States?, David A. Skeel Jr.

All Faculty Scholarship

The financial crisis that has afflicted America’s cities and states for the past decade is far from over. Under existing U.S. law, distressed municipalities can file for bankruptcy if their state permits this, as roughly half do. The states themselves do not have a bankruptcy option, however, no matter how bleak their circumstances may be. There have recently been dramatic developments in the handling of municipal distress. Several cities have filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 9, which, although adequate for sewer and water districts or a very small town, has conventionally been deemed irrelevant for real cities and municipalities. Additionally, …

Whither Workforce Housing?, Matthew J. Parlow

Matthew Parlow

Squaring The Circle On Sprawl: What More Can We Do?: Progress Towards Sustainable Land Use In The States, Patricia E. Salkin

Patricia E. Salkin

With almost ten years of nationwide dialogue and experimentation with the legal implementation of smart growth concepts at the state and local levels, this paper pauses to consider whether and to what extent success has been realized. The one certainty in this dynamic intersection of land development and conservation is that there is no one best model adaptable to all fifty states. Rather, to accommodate national diversity in local government structure, cultural relationships of people to the land, and differences in geography and a sense of place, the best lesson learned is that advocates and lawmakers alike must shape and …

Engaging Deliberative Democracy At The Grassroots: Prioritizing The Effects Of The Fiscal Crisis In New York At The Local Government Level, Patricia E. Salkin, Charles Gottlieb

Scholarly Works

Part I of this Article discusses many of the factors contributing to the fiscal crisis at the local level in New York including historic decreases in federal and state revenue sharing, the imposition of a new property tax cap, the failure of New York to address meaningfully the subject of unfunded mandates on local governments, and the dependency of some local jurisdictions on the timely adoption of a state budget. Part II discusses concepts of deliberative democracy and how local residents might be engaged to become partners with local officials in making difficult fiscal decisions that impact all community residents. …

The Quiet Revolution And Federalism: Into The Future, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

This Article offers an examination of the federal role in land use planning and regulation set in the context of varying theories of federalism by presenting a historical and modern overview of the increasing federal influence in local land use planning and regulation, specifically highlighting how federal statutes and programs impact local municipal decision making in the area of land use planning. Part II provides a brief introduction into theories of federalism and their application to local land use regulation in the United States. Part III provides a brief overview of federal legislation in the United States which affected local …

Progressive Policy-Making On The Local Level: Rethinking Traditional Notions Of Federalism, Matthew J. Parlow

Matthew Parlow

Squaring The Circle On Sprawl: What More Can We Do?: Progress Towards Sustainable Land Use In The States, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

With almost ten years of nationwide dialogue and experimentation with the legal implementation of smart growth concepts at the state and local levels, this paper pauses to consider whether and to what extent success has been realized. The one certainty in this dynamic intersection of land development and conservation is that there is no one best model adaptable to all fifty states. Rather, to accommodate national diversity in local government structure, cultural relationships of people to the land, and differences in geography and a sense of place, the best lesson learned is that advocates and lawmakers alike must shape and …

Ethics In Land Use: Using Ethical Allegations As A Sword Rather Than A Shield, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Section 1983 Litigation, Martin A. Schwartz

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Last Centrifugal Force, Robert F. Nagel

Publications

No abstract provided.

A Case Study In Fiscal Federalism: New York City And New York State, Carol O'Cleireacain

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This essay argues that under the current system of American state and local government funding schemes, there is a permanent imbalance between revenues and expenditures as a result of strain placed on local governments by other levels of government which can only be fixed with actions take by these other levels of government. This essay examines the current structure of American "Fiscal Federalism", the recent experience of America's cities with Fiscal Federalism (particularly New York), changing relationship between city and state government, and Governor Mario Cuomo's proposal for a phased-in takeover of Medicaid spending. The author concludes that the Governor's …

Fourth, Fifth, And Sixth Amendments, William E. Hellerstein

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Growth Management In The 1980s: A New Consensus And A Change Of Strategy, Susan M. Sinclair

New England Journal of Public Policy

After a decade of relative silence on the issue of land use planning, legislatures in several states are reassessing the relative roles of state and local governments in the management of growth and development. When state governments first addressed the land use issue in the late 1960s and the early 1970s, environmental concerns dominated the debate. During this period a number of states established regulatory mechanisms for bringing certain kinds of development under state review. During the late 1970s and early 1980s there was a hiatus in state-level activity on land use issues. Since 1985, however, the issue has reemerged …