"Solving the Federal Land Problem"

Excellent idea.

Comments

[Mike]

Given our political climate, letting the government manage the disposal of its landholdings will be fraught with cronyism.

I prefer to have the government involved in the process as little as possible.

Have a commission divide all the land up into parcels, large and small, that make economic sense. Incorporate these parcels. Give every citizen 10, 100, 1,000 (pick your favorite number) shares in each of these parcels.

Let the trading begin.

[Maddog]

It seems the unanswered threshold question to this is, “does the US federal government have the power under the Constitution to own land within a state?”
The Constitution provides:
Article III. Section. 3.
New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.
The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular State.
Article. I. Section. 8.
To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;--And

I don’t see anything which would allow the US government to own land within a state outside of the Article I, Section 8 language where it is allowed to exercise exclusive control over D.C. and specific land and buildings purchased by the consent of the state legislatures for Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards and other needful Buildings. There is no mention whatsoever of exclusive control of the large tracts of land the federal government controls in the west. Even if the various state legislatures authorized such control or purchases, the Constitution does not authorize this holding.

Article III, Section 3, describes the formation and restrictions on formation of states and the power of the US government to control territories and other Property belonging to the United States, but it does not authorize the US government to own or control property within any state outside or in addition to the power extended in Article I, Section 8.

The federal land holdings in the west are unconstitutional. The federal government has no choice but to remove itself from these lands and allow the states to exercise their rightful control over these lands. The federal government may owe the states compensation for its unconstitutional interference with the states rightful control of these lands.

[kyle8]

I would like them to open up some of that land to homesteading, sell parcels of several acres size at a discount to people who have been long term tax paying citizens.