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Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District

Country/Territory
United States of America
Type of court
National - higher court
Date
Oct 5, 2012
Source
UNEP, InforMEA
Court name
Supreme Court of the United States
Reference number
No. 11-1447
Language
English
Subject
Land & soil, Environment gen., Legal questions
Keyword
Wetlands Constitutional law Land-use planning
Abstract
Koontz wanted to develop a piece of property that is subject to oversight by the St. Johns Water Management District, a Florida agency that oversees the state's wetlands. In return for approval of the project, the District required him to mitigate the effects of the development on the local watershed. The District sought to have him not only reserve the unimproved parts of his property for conservation, but also pay to replace culverts and fill ditches on 50 other acres owned by the District. Koontz refused, so the District denied him a permit to develop his land. He then sued in Florida state court, arguing that the exaction was an impermissible "regulatory taking." The state trial court and intermediate appellate court both ruled for Koontz, holding that the exaction lacked the "essential nexus" and "rough proportionality" required by Nollan and Dolan, and Kootz was awarded his building permit and damages for the "temporary taking" that occurred during the eleven years when he was unable to begin the project. But the Florida Supreme Court reversed, on two grounds. First the court held that Nollan and Dolan forbid only the taking of real property, and do not apply when what is at issue is the payment of money. Second, the court held that Nollan and Dolan apply only when the government grants a permit with an unconstitutional condition, not when it denies a permit even if the reason for the denial is that the landowner refused to agree to an unconstitutional condition.
Full text
COU-159729.pdf