Speed v. Hosemann, et. al

In a tremendous victory for property rights, 73 percent of Mississippians overwhelmingly rejected the infamous U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Kelo v. City of New London to become the 44^th state to pass stronger protections for property owners against eminent domain abuse. Initiative 31 amends the Mississippi Constitution to prohibit the government from seizing private property by eminent domain and handing it to other private entities.  Government agencies that take private property by eminent domain for a public use must own and use that property for 10 years before selling or transferring it to a new, private owner. Restricting the transfer of the property the government acquires by eminent domain discourages the forced transfer of property from one private owner to another private owner under the guise of “economic development” and will protect the vast majority of property owners in Mississippi.