I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6220 
To require payment of three times the amount of just compensation whenever 
private property is taken for private economic development use. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 27, 2006 
Mr. PEARCE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To require payment of three times the amount of just com-
pensation whenever private property is taken for private 
economic development use. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. TREBLE COMPENSATION FOR USE OF EMINENT 
DOMAIN FOR PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT PUR-
POSES. 
If— 
(1)(A) the Federal Government or any author-
ity of the Federal Government exercises its power of 
eminent domain or allows the exercise of such power 
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by any person or entity to which such power has 
been delegated, or 
(B) any State or political subdivision thereof 
exercises its power of eminent domain or allows the 
exercise of such power by any person or entity to 
which such power has been delegated, during a fiscal 
year in which said State or political subdivision re-
ceives Federal economic development funds, and 
(2) the property over which the power of emi-
nent domain is exercised is planned, or subsequently 
used, for economic development, 
such Government, State, political subdivision, or delegee 
shall provide to the owner of such property, as compensa-
tion for such property, an amount equal to three times 
the amount that is determined to be the amount of just 
compensation for such property required under the Fifth 
Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this Act, the following definitions 
shall apply: 
(1) 
ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT.—The 
term 
‘‘economic development’’ means taking private prop-
erty, without the consent of the owner, and con-
veying or leasing such property from one private 
person or entity to another private person or entity 
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for commercial enterprise carried on for profit, or to 
increase tax revenue, tax base, employment, or gen-
eral economic health, except that such term shall not 
include— 
(A) conveying private property— 
(i) to public ownership, such as for a 
road, hospital, airport, or military base; 
(ii) to an entity, such as a common 
carrier, that makes the property available 
to the general public as of right, such as 
a railroad or public facility; 
(iii) for use as a road or other right 
of way or means, open to the public for 
transportation, whether free or by toll; 
(iv) for use as an aqueduct, flood con-
trol facility, pipeline, or similar use; 
(B) removing harmful uses of land pro-
vided such uses constitute an immediate threat 
to public health and safety; 
(C) leasing property to a private person or 
entity that occupies an incidental part of public 
property or a public facility, such as a retail es-
tablishment on the ground floor of a public 
building; 
(D) acquiring abandoned property; 
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(E) clearing defective chains of title; 
(F) taking private property for use by a 
public utility; and 
(G) redeveloping of a brownfield site as de-
fined in the Small Business Liability Relief and 
Brownfields Revitalization Act (42 U.S.C. 
9601(39)). 
(2) 
FEDERAL
ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT 
FUNDS.—The term ‘‘Federal economic development 
funds’’ means any Federal funds distributed to or 
through States or political subdivisions of States 
under Federal laws designed to improve or increase 
the size of the economies of States or political sub-
divisions of States. 
(3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 
the several States, the District of Columbia, the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any other terri-
tory or possession of the United States. 
Æ 
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