An Upstate New York family is taking the state to federal court, arguing that New York’s ban on natural gas extraction wiped out the value of land they legally own. The constitutional argument is simple: if the government eliminates all productive use of your private property, it owes you compensation.
They Did Their Homework Before Buying
Madison Woodward III is a geologist, so when he and his son Thomas purchased land in Delaware County in 2011, it was no casual decision. The property sat on a rich natural gas reserve, and similar tracts just across the border in Pennsylvania were already producing results. They bought with confidence that it was a sound investment.
Then the State Changed the Rules
New York then issued an executive order banning hydraulic fracturing statewide. The Woodwards lost the ability to use the mineral rights they had purchased. To understand why that matters: mineral rights are the legal ownership of the natural resources beneath a piece of land, separate from owning the land itself. Rather than walk away, the Woodwards sold the surface rights but held onto the mineral rights, betting that…..