Government Appeals Hage Case

Liberty Matters | October 7, 2010 -

After 18 years in one court, Hage v. United States officially moves to the next level at the U.S. Court of Appeals after the U.S. Department of Justice filed its appeal on October 1, 2010.

“The government had too much at stake to let the Court of Claims decision stand,” said Margaret Hage Byfield, daughter of Wayne and Jean Hage and executive director of American Stewards of Liberty.

No briefing schedule has been issued, but hopefully, the case will be heard and decided in a much more expedited fashion and no matter the decision, Hage will probably end up at the U.S. Supreme Court.

Since this has been appealed to the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C., whatever decision is made will have binding precedent throughout the U.S., unless and until it is appealed to the Supreme Court.

Wayne and Jean Hage, both deceased, filed the landmark Fifth Amendment takings case on September 26, 1991, and obtained a final decision nearly 19 years later on August 2, 2010.  The case achieved remarkable precedents for all landowners and is one of the most important Fifth Amendment victories for private property in the past two decades explaining why the government felt they had to appeal.

The Hage case not only achieved a monetary award for the taking of the Hage Pine Creek Ranch, but it received an unprecedented award for attorney’s fees as well.  Judge Loren Smith’s decision said Hage owned; (1) the rights-of-way and 50 feet on each side of the ditches on the federal lands, (2) the range improvements on the federal lands and (3) the water that flows from the federal lands onto the private fee land.

Unfortunately, the Hage family may be in the court system for another two to five years.

View August 2, 2010 Decision

Read more about the Hage v. United States case

American Stewards of Liberty, Copyright 2010
PO Box 1190 Taylor, TX 76574; asl@americanstewards.us; www.AmericanStewards.us

The Food Safety Modernization Act (SB 510)

Liberty Matters | October 7, 2010 -

On September 29, 2010, Senator Harry Reid attempted to end debate on S 510, the Food Safety Modernization Act, by filing a Motion for Cloture to circumvent Senator Tom Coburn’s (R-OK) objections to the bill.

Filing cloture begins the process of moving the bill to the floor under restricted debate, removing the possibility of a filibuster and ending Coburn's objection to bringing the bill to the floor.  The procedure requires 60 votes, which Reid claims he has nearly 90 to do.

S 510 provides for extreme enlargement of the regulatory authority of agencies regarding the safety of food products.  Even though it’s early provisions exempt farms and ranches, close attention must be paid to this bill and others like it.

The Natural Solutions Foundation claimed a deal was struck to push this bill through during the September-December session on a “unanimous consent” agenda.

The vague language of the bill has caused many to object to S 510 fearing that increased power for the Food and Drug Administration and the Health and Human Services agencies will also mean increased costs, paperwork and strict regulations that could bring down the axe on the already dwindling numbers of small farms.

In a recent action alert, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) summarizes, “The new regulations could erect new barriers to these important markets for small and mid-scale farmers unable to bear the expense of compliance.”

The main concern with any such food safety legislation is whether or not it actually solves the real problems inherent within our food system. Many don’t believe that giving an already overloaded government agency the power to create and enforce new food regulations will make our industrial, centralized food production system safer or healthier.

Reid’s move assures the bill will be one of the first bills up for consideration in November when Congress reconvenes after the election, although it will compete with a variety of high profile issues, including a defense authorization bill and whether to extend the Bush tax cuts.

Read another article reporting the Cloture move by Reid on S 510.

American Stewards of Liberty, Copyright 2010
PO Box 1190 Taylor, TX 76574; asl@americanstewards.us; www.AmericanStewards.us

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