PIOGA Press
The power of a private company to exercise eminent domain is delegated by state and federal governments. There are two forms of condemnation which may be used to obtain private property for natural gas pipelines and other midstream facilities. Under a “straight condemnation,” the action is initiated in court by the filing of a complaint, proceeds in due course to the determination of just compensation and upon payment of just compensation the condemnor takes possession of the property. The second method of condemnation, commonly referred to as a “quick take,” allows the condemnor to file a “declaration of taking,” deposit the estimated compensation with the court and upon court order title to the condemned property automatically vests in the condemnor. Pennsylvania statutory law provides for both straight and quick take condemnations. Under federal law, however, the more expeditious quick take procedure is prescribed in the Declaration of Taking Act (DTA) and is available only in condemnation proceedings “brought by and in the name of the United States.” Therefore, the quick take authority granted by the DTA is unavailable to private companies. With traditional straight condemnation being the only course available to private companies under federal law, an issue that is often litigated in such actions is whether a company can gain possession of the property before the issue of just compensation is tried. The timing of possession is a critical consideration in the taking of a pipeline right-of-way because pipeline projects are often subject to strict deadlines and construction depends on many factors, including weather and environmental impacts. However, the ability of a company to acquire access to property prior to the payment of just compensation depends upon whether state or federal law governs the condemnation action.