State and Local Government Law Commons^™

Our Town: Local Governments Play Larger Role In Environmental Policy, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

People normally perceive environmental law to be a piecemeal of federal laws mostly concerned with terminating pollution from point sources, such as smoke stacks or water pipes. Land use law on the other hand, is normally a local undertaking, often ignoring national or even regional issues. Today’s new breed of environmental problems, such as sprawl, require that different levels of government work together to create a comprehensively planned land use strategy in order to mitigate long-term environmental degradation. Through the use of financial incentives and other tools, larger bodies of government help encourage local governments to take the necessary steps …

Local Protection: Raising A Matter Of 'Sovereign Concern', John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Challenges to the expansion of local initiatives aimed at local environmental protection question the powers delegated to municipal governments from the state. New York case precedent suggests that express and implied police power authority conferred from the state to municipalities is a broad concept and includes the power to protect natural resources, scenic views, and other environmental concerns. Through the use of this power, localities are better able to meet the environmental challenges they are faced with by using innovative grass-roots initiatives

The Asymmetry Of State Sovereign Immunity, Richard H. Seamon

Washington Law Review

This Article discusses whether a State has sovereign immunity from claims for just compensation. The Article concludes that the States are indeed immune from just-compensation suits brought against them in federal court; States are not necessarily immune, however, from just-compensation suits brought against them in their own courts of general jurisdiction. Thus, the States' immunity in federal court is not symmetrical to the States' immunity in their own courts. This asymmetry, the Article explains, is the result of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Due Process Clause obligates a State to provide a means of paying just …

Protecting Our Mentally Ill: A Critique Of The Role Of Indiana State Courts In Protecting Involuntarily Committed Mental Patients' Right To Refuse Medication, Michael Leonard Goff Jr.

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Exporting And Importing Domestic Partnerships: Some Conflict-Of-Laws Questions And Concerns, Ralph U. Whitten

BYU Law Review

This article is about conflicts of laws questions relating to domestic partnerships. The article points out that since there will be states that recognize domestic partnerships because the American Law Institute has expressed approval of domestic partnerships, there will be conflict of laws problems if not all states recognize it. The purpose of this article is to describe some of the conflicts issues that arise when parties to domestic partnerships have, or develop, contacts with more than one state. The article does so by explaining the two broad areas in which these conflicts will arise and by showing that there …

The Sixth Circuit Dropped The Ball: An Analysis Of Brentwood Academy V. Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Ass'n In Light Of The Supreme Court's Recent Trends In State Action Jurisprudence, Josiah N. Drew

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Battle For The Ages: Defining Federal Power To Affect Local Land Use, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Under the 10th Amendment, the United States Constitution allows states to control land use within their jurisdiction. The federal government therefore, in its efforts to mitigate environmental damages caused by sprawl and over development, is limited to federal statutes carried about by federal agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency managed Clean Water Act. Although these federal programs are helpful at reducing pollution from point sources, they are precluded from regulating non-point sources, such as the increased storm water run-off caused by expanding development. Through federally backed programs, states could support regional land use planning that would encourage stronger environmental …

3rd Annual Open Government Summit: Access To Public Records Act & Open Meetings Act, 2001, Department Of The Attorney General, State Of Rhode Island

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Reefer Madness: How Voters Responded To Medicinal Marijuana Initiatives In The 1998 State Elections, Ryan E. Wood

Masters Theses

In recent years, a growing number of states have witnessed the passage of state initiatives that have authorized the medicinal use of marijuana. The medicinal marijuana movement has circumvented elected state legislatures by relying on an increasingly popular form of direct democracy - the direct initiative. This paper briefly examines the history and continuing legacy of illicit drugs and the initiative process in the context of the movement for medicinal marijuana. However, the primary focus of this study is to uncover the voter characteristics that influenced attitudes toward medicinal marijuana in the 1998 state elections. This paper uses Voter News …

How To Apply The Religious Freedom Restoration Act To Federal Law Without Violating The Constitution, Gregory P. Magarian

Michigan Law Review

Learned commentators have called the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 ("RFRA" or "the Act") "perhaps the most unconstitutional statute in the history of the nation" and "the most egregious violation of the separation of powers doctrine in American constitutional history." In the 1997 case of City of Boerne v. Flores, the Supreme Court struck down the Act in its applications to state and local governments, declaring that "RFRA contradicts vital principles necessary to maintain separation of powers and the federal balance." The Act's applications to federal law, however, survived Boerne, which means that plaintiffs with religious freedom claims against …

Got "Hormone-Free" Milk?: Your State May Have Enough Interest To Let You Know, Jennifer R. Thornley

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Serendipity And Abduction In Proofs, Presumptions, And Emerging Laws, Pek Van Andel, Danièle Bourcier

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

In Our Backyards: Analyzing Local Authority To Adopt Environmental Laws, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

While the authority of municipalities to partake in land use decisions is a well-established concept, a question often arises concerning local legislative authority to adopt environmental laws. This article discusses some of the arguments advocating local environmental authority by highlighting the correlation between land use law and environmental law. Also discussed in this article, is the authority granted to local governments by the state legislature and court decisions to mitigate adverse environmental impacts.

Creating Better River Basin Governance: A Comment, David M. Freeman

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

3 pages.

Creating Better Governance, Denise D. Fort

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

17 pages (includes illustration).

Contains 2 pages of references.

Water For The Environment: A Californian’S Retrospective, Thomas J. Graff

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

9 pages.

Strategies To Facilitate Changes In Water Use, Bonnie G. Colby

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

21 pages.

Contains 4 pages of references and 2 pages of endnotes.

Clarifying State Water Rights And Adjudications, John E. Thorson

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

32 pages.

Contains references.

Clarifying State Water Rights And Adjudications, Greg Hobbs

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

14 pages.

Contains footnotes.

Agenda: Two Decades Of Water Law And Policy Reform: A Retrospective And Agenda For The Future, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Hydrosphere Resource Consultants, Modrall, Sperling, Roehl, Harris & Sisk, P.A., Patrick & Stowell, P.C., Perkins Coie Llp, The William And Flora Hewlett Foundation

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

1 v. (various pagings) ; 29 cm

"Sponsors: Hydrosphere Resource Consultants; Modrall, Sperling, Roehl, Harris & Sisk, P.A.; Patrick & Stowell, P.C.; Perkins Coie LLP; The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation."

Conference speakers, moderators and/or panelists included University of Colorado School of Law professors Gary C. Bryner, Douglas S. Kenney, Sarah Krakoff, Kathryn Mutz, David H. Getches, Lawrence J. MacDonnell and James N. Corbridge, Jr.

Includes bibliographical references

The conference will examine the agenda for reforming and improving water law that has developed during the past two decades in the West, assesses what has (and has not) been accomplished by …

The Road To Water Policy Reform: Where We’Ve Been, And Can We Avoid Going There Again, John D. Leshy

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

6 pages.

Two Decades Of Water Law And Policy Reform Proposals: An Overview, Lawrence J. Macdonnell

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

22 pages.

Contains references.

Using Water More Efficiently, Barton H. Thompson Jr.

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

23 pages.

Contains footnotes.

Fishes Swimmin’ Up River…: New Approaches To Obtaining Water For Fish And Wildlife, Dick Daniel

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

2 pages.

Acquiring Water For Tribes, Susan M. Williams

Two Decades of Water Law and Policy Reform: A Retrospective and Agenda for the Future (Summer Conference, June 13-15)

16 pages.

Contains references (page 15).

Appeal No. 0774: Stonebridge Operating Co. V. Division Of Mineral Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Chief's Order 2006-98 & 2006-121

Understanding Sprawl: Lessons From Architecture For Legal Scholars, Mark S. Davies

Michigan Law Review

What is suburban "sprawl"? Why is it undesirable? Why do many Americans nevertheless choose to live in sprawl? Do local zoning laws contribute to sprawl? Can democratic institutions discourage it? Legal scholars are beginning to study these urgent and complex questions. This Essay reviews Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream, by Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, and Jeff Speck, leading architects of the influential New Urbanism or traditional town planning movement. This review makes five points about the legal study of sprawl. First, Suburban Nation provides a definition of "sprawl" that the law can …

Saying Neigh To North Carolina's Equine Activity Liability Act, Karen A. Blum

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

California's Curious Practice Of "Pocket Review", Steven B. Katz

The Journal of Appellate Practice and Process

The majority of any California appellate panel is permitted to certify an opinion for publication that establishes new law or modifies existing rules. The California Supreme court can reverse any publication decision without giving any reason. This practice is called "pocket review." Pocket reviews risk thwarting legislative intent and sweeping the results under the rug.

A Conservative Defense Of Romer V. Evans, Dale Carpenter

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.