Governing Local Land Use

In a 2-3 paragraph statement, discuss whether or not the federal or state government should govern local land use in disaster mitigation. Be sure to provide evidence that supports your response and cite any references you use. Respond to a classmate’s post with a 2-3 paragraph statement on why you agree or disagree with the others’ post.

Please start a new thread when creating your initial post and write any responses to others within their existing discussion threads. To receive full credit, be sure to respond to at least one of your classmates’ postings.

In my opinion, the current and founding concepts of land ownership/use—being at the discretion of the individual with guidance from the local and escalating governing bodies—is functional and provides the best methods for establishing plans, legislation, or “taking” land with disaster mitigation as the concern.

As a general “rule”, the federal government has no interest in land, aside from federally recognized areas of concern—such as large wildlife preserves/national parks; military installations and points concerning national security; borders/ports/transportation systems affecting commerce; and widely recognized ecological/environmental concerns. Further regulation of land falls to the responsibility of the state, as the governing body of the state should better represent the needs of that specific area/region/community of people (Schwab, et al; 147-8).

State level governance of land recognizes the concerns of the federal government, while applying, recognizing and regulating concerns within the political and/or natural borders of the state. State governance—while establishing stronger regulation—also provides guidance for local governmental bodies.

Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the local governments to enforce and police very specific needs of land and people—unless this power has not been delegated by or inherited from the state (Schwab, et al; 150) ; it is not uncommon, however, for the local governing bodies to be ill-equipped or incapable of enforcing regulations, conducting feasibility studies, or making purchases of land for mitigation efforts. As such, aid in the form of grants or state/federal recovery and mitigation projects are applied for by the local community (FEMA, 2010).

References

FEMA. (2010). Grants and Assistance Programs for Governments. Retrieved July 4, 2012, from: https://web.archive.org/web/20120322123227/http://www.fema.gov:80/government/grant/government.shtm

Schwab, A., Eschelbach, K., & Brower, D. (2007.) Hazard Mitigation and Preparedness. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.