Bill
HB 6134
Allows DEM to use eminent domain to acquire established foot paths, securing public access to waterways (streams, rivers, lakes, ponds) and enabling community maintenance.
Status and procedural history
- Title: AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT — EMINENT DOMAIN
- Introduced: March 26, 2025 (Sponsors: Reps. McNamara and Cortvriend)
- Referred to: House Judiciary
- Committee status: As of April 29, 2025, committee recommended the measure be held for further study.
- Effective date if enacted: upon passage.
Note on source material
- The materials provided to summarize include text from more than one bill (an unrelated Michigan family/protection-order amendment and a Rhode Island eminent-domain bill). This summary addresses the Rhode Island eminent-domain bill (LC002525 / HB 6134) titled “Eminent Domain.”
Purpose and intent
- The bill clarifies and expands permissible public uses for which entities granted eminent domain powers in Rhode Island may acquire property. Its main, specific addition is to authorize the Department of Environmental Management (DEM) to acquire established foot paths by eminent domain in order to provide public access to streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds.
Key provisions
- Amends § 42-64.12-6 (Permissible uses of eminent domain powers) to state that entities with eminent domain authority may acquire property consistent with other laws for the following purposes (non-exhaustive list):
1. Public ownership and use — explicitly includes DEM acquiring established foot paths to provide public access to waterways; authorizes DEM to allow local community groups to care for and maintain those paths.
2. Transportation infrastructure — roads, highways, bridges, ramps.
3. Public utilities and common carriers — includes telecommunications.
4. Eliminating identifiable public harms or correcting conditions affecting public health, safety, morals, or welfare — e.g., blight remediation, environmental contamination cleanup, disaster repairs.
5. Providing good and marketable title free of liens/encumbrances when acquiring or conveying property for the above purposes.
- The amendment is phrased to be subject to “other restrictions and limitations established by law, rule, regulation, or ordinance.”
Who would be affected
- Property owners whose land includes established foot paths or access corridors to water bodies — their land could be subject to DEM acquisition by eminent domain for public access.
- The Department of Environmental Management — gains explicit authority to pursue acquisition of foot paths and to delegate maintenance/care to community groups.
- Local community groups and the public — could benefit from improved, legally secured access to waterways and from stewardship opportunities.
- Municipalities and state agencies involved in infrastructure, utilities, environmental remediation, and land conveyance.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Access expansion: could increase public access to streams, lakes, and ponds by securing foot paths as public property or easements.
- Property-rights and fiscal implications: acquisitions by eminent domain would implicate constitutional/ statutory requirements for just compensation and could generate cost to the state and potential litigation from landowners. The bill does not specify compensation mechanics (these remain subject to existing eminent-domain law).
- Implementation: DEM may partner with local groups for maintenance, potentially reducing long-term state maintenance costs but requiring oversight agreements.
- The provision is limited by other statutory and regulatory constraints; it does not create blanket authority beyond existing eminent-domain frameworks.
If you’d like, I can:
- Produce a short one-page briefing for municipal officials or conservation groups summarizing practical steps and likely impacts, or
- Summarize the unrelated Michigan family-court text that appeared in the submitted materials.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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