I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3405 
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 
JULY 22, 2005 
Mr. BONILLA (for himself, Ms. HERSETH, Mr. GOODLATTE, Ms. WATERS, Mr. 
POMBO, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. OTTER, Mrs. DRAKE, 
Mr. BOYD, Mr. CALVERT, Mr. PEARCE, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. DUNCAN, 
Mr. THORNBERRY, Mr. NEUGEBAUER, and Mr. MCKEON) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and 
in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, Fi-
nancial Services, Resources, and Education and the Workforce, for a pe-
riod to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for con-
sideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com-
mittee 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 Representa-
tives 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 2005’’ or the 
‘‘STOPP Act of 2005’’. 
SEC. 2. CONDITIONS OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE UNDER 
FEDERAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PRO-
GRAMS. 
(a) PROHIBITION OF ASSISTANCE.—If, after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, any State (or any agency 
thereof) or any unit of general local government (or any 
agency thereof) engages in any act described in subsection 
(b), Federal financial assistance under any Federal eco-
nomic development program may not be provided to such 
State (including any agency thereof) or unit of general 
local government (including any agency thereof), respec-
tively, at any time after such act. 
(b) LIMITATIONS ON USE OF EMINENT DOMAIN.— 
The acts described in this subsection are as follows: 
(1) USE OF EMINENT DOMAIN FOR PRIVATE 
COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT.—Any use of the power 
of eminent domain to take property from one private 
individual or entity for any economic development 
purpose and transfer ownership of such property (or 
a portion thereof) to another private individual or 
entity.
(2) FAILURE TO PROVIDE RELOCATION ASSIST-
ANCE FOR PERSONS DISPLACED BY USE OF EMI-
NENT
DOMAIN
FOR
ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT.— 
Failing to provide, to any person displaced by the 
use of the power of eminent domain for any eco-
nomic development purpose, relocation assistance 
under the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real 
Property Acquisitions Policies Act of 1970 (42 
U.S.C. 4601 et seq.) in the same manner and to the 
same extent as relocation assistance is required 
under such Act to be provided by a Federal agency 
that undertakes a program or project that results in 
displacement of such person. 
(c) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE.—If the head of 
a Federal agency does not have actual knowledge that a 
particular State or unit of general government has en-
gaged in an act described subsection (b) after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, a certification made to such 
Federal agency head by the chief executive officer of the 
State or unit of general government that such State or 
unit has not engaged in any such act shall be sufficient 
for such Federal agency head to determine that the State 
or unit is not ineligible, by reason of subsection (a), for 
Federal financial assistance under a Federal economic de-
velopment program administered by such Federal agency 
head. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this Act, the following definitions 
shall apply: 
(1) FEDERAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PRO-
GRAM.—The term ‘‘Federal economic development 
program’’ means any of the following programs: 
(A) DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.— 
(i) FOREST SERVICE.— 
(I) The National Forest-depend-
ent rural communities program for as-
sistance for economic recovery 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 pursuant to 
the Department of the Interior and 
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 
2001 (Public Law 106–291; 114 Stat. 
972) and the Department of the Inte-
rior and Related Agencies Appropria-
tions Act, 2005 (Public Law 108–447, 
Division E; 118 Stat. 3080).
(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 opportu-
nities 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 develop-
ment 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 enter-
prise grants program under section 
310B(c) of the Consolidated Farm 
and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 
1932(c)). 
(V) The rural economic develop-
ment loans and grants program under