Outstanding Article on Local Control Vs Liberty

The idea that local control means local elected officials are allowed to enact any ordinance that is not prohibited by the State is a very dangerous idea. Some cities in Texas apparently believe that as they have enacted local ordinances that are in violation of the Texas constitution or law and exceed the authority provided by the same.

An excellent article that explains the idea that local control does not trump liberty with specific examples was published in the Austin Statesman.

But local control isn’t a foundational principle; it’s a tool. And like all tools, its purpose is to accomplish something much bigger.

Its validity is based on the idea that decentralized power is best, and that rules should be made at the level of government closest to the people. And that’s very often true. But it doesn’t supersede constitutional rights nor foundational principles. In other words, it’s not a blank check.

Over the years, a growing number of Texas cities have adopted ordinances telling property owners what they can and cannot do with the trees on their land. Fortunately, this bad practice was curtailed somewhat during the last special session, to the chagrin of local control enthusiasts. It was something that needed to happen.

Why?

Beyond the policy concerns, tree-cutting ordinances had—and to some extent still do have—the potential to violate a person’s constitutional rights. See, the Texas Constitution has a provision called the Takings Clause that requires just compensation be provided to a person whose private property has been taken for a public use by the government. Lawmakers determined that preserving this constitutional right was more important than protecting a community’s aesthetic preferences.

Constitutional rights 1, local control 0.

Georgetown has a tree ordinance and it has the potential to violate the Texas Constitution if the landowner is not adequately compensated. Why should a city have authority to devalue the use of private property? Tree ordinances should be eliminated with respect to private property.