Ohio Farm Bureau congratulates U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan on election as minority leader
Jordan was selected by his Republican colleagues to lead the party in the U.S. House of Representatives beginning in January.
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Ohio Farm Bureau has filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the highest court in the land to take on a case to help Ohio landowners.
The case, O’Connor v. Eubanks, takes on the question of whether a state can be sued in federal court for a “takings” claim. Specific to this case, the “taking” is about unclaimed funds that were being held by the state, which did not provide the plaintiff, Mr. O’Connor, interest on those funds when he claimed them.
According to Ohio Farm Bureau Policy Counsel Leah Curtis, this could set a precedent that goes well beyond unclaimed funds.
“We filed this brief in large part because of eminent domain and something called, ‘inverse condemnation,’ which is a claim you can make in court when the government takes your property but doesn’t go through the proper process to do so and doesn’t compensate you,” Curtis said. “Ohio appears to be the only state in the country that lacks an inverse condemnation claim, instead requiring our landowners to go through a much longer and convoluted process. If, instead, the federal courts were open to our landowners, they would have access to an inverse condemnation claim and have more ability to recover attorney fees, which are often difficult to recover in state courts.”
That combination – a streamlined legal process and the opportunity for attorney fees – makes it much more likely that a landowner can afford to bring their case to court and have their rights protected.
This is not the first brief Ohio Farm Bureau has filed with the U.S. Supreme Court on the issue of eminent domain. Before the verdict in Knick v. Scott Township, it was practically impossible to take any “takings” claim into federal court unless you sued the federal government.
“The decision in that case opened the door to ‘takings’ claims coming into federal court but subsequently, cases that have been decided since then have said it can’t come to federal court if it’s against a state,” Curtis said. “So now we have a situation where if a lower level government, like a county or a township or city takes property, that claim can go to federal court. But if a state takes it, it has to go to state court. Hopefully this new case can make an opportunity to open that federal courthouse door a little wider and let more claims come in.”
Curtis acknowledged that the process could take a little time. It’s unlikely the U.S. Supreme Court would decide before the end of the current session, so a decision to accept the case may be out by fall. If the court accepts the case, the argument will likely be sometime in early 2025, and then a decision would be sometime around the middle of next year.
My first recommendation in your journey is to start out with a local farming friend or mentor along with joining an organization like Ohio Farm Bureau.
We’re just so thankful for the Farm Bureau and the foundation for helping put this together. And of course, the Boyert family for the vision they had with this grant. It’s jumping us forward 10 years. It’s unbelievable.
I could not have done it without the resources I have found through Farm Bureau.
It wasn’t until I joined the Wilmington College Collegiate Farm Bureau that I truly saw how my passion could translate into leadership, advocacy and a career.
The issue of property taxation remains as one of the biggest challenges our members face today. Ensuring agricultural property is valued for its agricultural potential and not development is critical to the continued success of Ohio agriculture.
Through the Select Partner program, we became educated in farm insurance and weren't just selling policies. It became more and more clear why farmers need an advocate like Ohio Farm Bureau.
So many of the issues that OFBF and its members are advocating for are important to all Ohioans. I look at OFBF as an agricultural watchdog advocating for farmers and rural communities across Ohio.
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