DATE:  June 17, 2010                                                    
CONTACT:  Doug Kendall, 202-296-6889

Constitutional Accountability Center Hails Unanimous Ruling By the Supreme Court Rejecting Challenge to Beach Protection

WASHINGTON, DC — The Supreme Court today unanimously rejected an absurd takings claim by a handful of Florida property owners who objected to a beach restoration project on Florida’s Gulf Coast that not only restored eroded beaches, but also enhanced property values (something most property owners, unsurprisingly, supported).  Constitutional Accountability Center (CAC), along with the State and Local Legal Center, filed a brief in this case in support of Florida on behalf of local government organizations, and today CAC’s President Doug Kendall hailed the Court’s ruling:

“The Court’s ruling today supports Florida’s efforts to restore eroded beaches and preserves the ability of state and local governments to respond to changing environmental conditions.  As the oil spill now ravaging our Nation’s coastlines vividly demonstrates, it is crucially important that the government have the authority to step in to protect our beaches and coastal communities. This case wasn’t about property rights – most landowners on the Gulf Coast favored Florida’s multi-million dollar effort to preserve the beach – it was about a few holdouts seeking to put the brakes on a popular government program.  While the Supreme Court is sharply divided ideologically in takings cases, every Justice wisely recognized there was no merit to the landowners’ claim in this case.”

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Constitutional Accountability Center is a think tank, public interest law firm, and action center dedicated to fulfilling the progressive promise of the Constitution’s text and history.