Colorado Democrats push to end new oil drilling by 2030
By: Scott Weiser
“A ban on oil and gas drilling in Colorado almost certainly would implicate Fifth Amendment rights, as the property rights of mineral owners, as well as royalty owners, would be rendered valueless as a result of such a statutory ban,” said Jack Luellen, energy & natural resources special counsel in the Denver office of the Buchalter Law Firm.
Luellen was referring go the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits the taking of private property for public use “without just compensation.” Section 15 of the Colorado Constitution mirrors the federal provision: “Private property shall not be taken or damaged, for public or private use, without just compensation.”
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