Wednesday, March 21, 2012

SCOTUS SIDES WITH CONSTITUTION FOR "WE THE PEOPLE"

Alan Note: This couple won in a lower court but were told by the Environmental  Protection Agency that it was NOT bound by  court orders and their decision was ABOVE THE LAW and could NOT be appealed to or overridden by the courts! The EPA is part of Obama's increasingly open attempt to control EVERYTHING to his own liking and as dictator, ABOVE the courts - as is the recent Executive Order he signed (details below on this page).

FINALLY, he is getting a push back! Let's hope the Supreme Court does the same with his ObamaCare power grab, which will be heard in a few days but results not expected till some time in June or July.

Vote to re-elect Obama at your own peril! He does not seem to care anymore and is all out to destroy us while he still can.

Or KNOWS he can manipulate/hack the voting machines (manufactured by Nancy Pelosi's son) to give him a win like he did last time with huge corruption of the votes and delegates. (Also see article below on this page).
******************************************************************************
The Supreme Court has sided with an Idaho couple in a property rights case, ruling they can go to court to challenge an Environmental Protection Agency order that blocked construction of their new home and threatened fines of more than $30,000 a day.



Wednesday's decision is a victory for Mike and Chantell Sackett, whose property near a scenic lake has sat undisturbed since the EPA ordered a halt in work in 2007. The agency said part of the property was a wetlands that could not disturbed without a permit.

In an opinion by Justice Antonin Scalia, the court rejected EPA's argument that allowing property owners quick access to courts to contest orders like the one issued to the Sacketts would compromise the agency's ability to deal with water pollution.

"Compliance orders will remain an effective means of securing prompt voluntary compliance in those many cases where there is no substantial basis to question their validity," Scalia said.

In this case, the couple objected to the determination that their small lot contained wetlands that are regulated by the Clean Water Act, and they complained there was no reasonable way to challenge the order without risking fines that can mount quickly.

The EPA issues nearly 3,000 administrative compliance orders a year that call on alleged violators of environmental laws to stop what they're doing and repair the harm they've caused. Major business groups, homebuilders, road builders and agricultural interests all have joined the Sacketts in urging the court to make it easier to contest EPA compliance orders issued under several environmental laws.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said in a separate opinion that the only issue decided by the court Wednesday is the Sacketts' ability to contest the EPA finding that their property is subject to the Clean Water Act. The court did not decide larger issues, Ginsburg said.

"On that understanding, I join the court's opinion," she said.

In another separate opinion, Justice Samuel Alito called on Congress to clear up confusion over the reach of the Clean Water Act. Alito said that federal regulators could assert authority over any property that is wet for even part of the year, not just rivers and streams.

The court's opinion "is better than nothing, but only clarification of the reach of the Clean Water Act can rectify the underlying problem," Alito said.

In 2005, the Sacketts paid $23,000 for a .63-acre lot near scenic Priest Lake. They decided to start building a modest, three-bedroom home early in 2007.

They had filled part of the property with rocks and soil, in preparation for construction, when federal officials showed up and ordered a halt in the work.

In a statement, the Sacketts praised the court for "affirming that we have rights, and that the EPA is not a law unto itself."

No comments: