SALT LAKE CITY — As more citizens and leaders speak out against an ICE facility in Salt Lake City, some legal questions are arising.
FOX 13 News spoke with a University of Utah law professor, who said the federal government's power to purchase property and develop it as it sees fit — potentially overriding local zoning laws — is raising significant legal questions.
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Jenna Prochaska specializes in property and local government law. She said the issue touches on a fundamental tension between federal authority and local control.
FOX 13 News anchor Bob Evans asked, "Can the federal government do that? Can they come in and just buy a piece of property and then develop it the way they want to?"
Prochaska said while the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution gives the federal government the power to supersede state and local laws, there are limitations to that authority under the Tenth Amendment.
"It's important to have the framework that local land use and zoning decisions are typically local government powers," Prochaska said.
But she noted that local governments are not without options.
"That doesn't mean cities are without power," Prochaska said.
Prochaska pointed to a specific constitutional principle that could limit what the federal government can require of local governments.
"And one important principle under the 10th Amendment is that the federal government can't coerce a state or local government into enforcing federal law or carrying out federal programs," Prochaska said. "When it comes to questions here, like what the federal government can force the city to do in terms of providing additional services, making infrastructure updates, that raises serious concerns under this 10th Amendment principle called the anti-commandeering doctrine. So there are stronger legal arguments that could be raised in that regard."
Prochaska said there are other places around the country where this exact issue is playing out. Because this is a new area of law, she believes it will very likely wind up in the courts — perhaps for a long time.
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