A state acquires a strip of private land to widen a highway. What must the owner receive?
Correct Answer
A) Just compensation
Taking private property for public use is eminent domain, carried out through condemnation, and the Constitution requires that just compensation be paid. A public purpose does not remove that requirement.
Why This Is the Correct Answer
Option A is correct because taking private property for public use is eminent domain, carried out through condemnation, and the Constitution requires that just compensation be paid. The highway widening serves a public purpose, which permits the taking but does not remove the duty to pay. Appraisers are often engaged to estimate that compensation.
Why the Other Options Are Wrong
Option B: Nothing, since the use is public
Option B, nothing since the use is public, reverses the rule. A public use is what allows the government to take the land, and the Constitution still requires just compensation.
Option C: A replacement parcel of equal size
Option C, a replacement parcel of equal size, is not the required remedy. The owner is owed just compensation, which is generally measured in money rather than a substitute parcel.
Option D: A tax exemption on the remaining land
Option D, a tax exemption on the remaining land, is not what the constitutional requirement provides. Just compensation is the owner's entitlement.
Take It, Pay For It
Eminent domain lets the government take private land for public use, but it must pay just compensation for what it takes.
How to use: Use this pairing to reject any answer suggesting a public taking can occur without just compensation.
Exam Tip
When a question describes government acquiring private land for a public project, look for just compensation as the owner's entitlement.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- -Believing public use removes the duty to compensate
- -Confusing eminent domain with police-power regulation
- -Assuming the owner receives a replacement parcel instead of compensation
Concept Deep Dive
Analysis
This question tests the constitutional requirement attached to eminent domain. Acquiring private land to widen a highway is a taking for public use carried out through condemnation. The owner's entitlement in that process is just compensation.
Background Knowledge
Eminent domain is the government's power to take private property for public use, and condemnation is the legal action that carries it out. The Constitution requires just compensation for property acquired this way. In a partial taking, such as a highway strip, compensation analysis often considers the part taken and any effect on the remaining property.
Real-World Application
A state transportation department needs a 20-foot strip along the frontage of a single-family home's lot for a road widening. An appraiser is engaged to estimate just compensation, including the value of the strip and any effect on the remaining property.
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