Opponents of the Army’s proposal to triple the size of its Piñon Canyon training site gathered Tuesday to back a measure that would bar the military from using state eminent domain laws to acquire the land.
Fort Carson uses the site on the southeastern Colorado plains to train its soldiers. Ranchers and others worry the Army will use eminent domain to force them to sell their land, shutting down ranches that have been in families for generations and hurting the area’s agriculture-based economy.
A bill by Democratic state Rep. Wes McKinley, a rancher from Walsh, would revoke the Army’s permission to use eminent domain. The measure (House Bill 1069) was to get its first hearing Tuesday afternoon.
McKinley said the bill would force the Army to make a better argument for why it needs to expand.
Colorado law gives the federal government the right to condemn land for certain purposes, such as building post offices or courthouses.
McKinley’s bill would bar federal authorities from using eminent domain to buy land from unwilling sellers for use by the military.
The Army could still buy land from willing sellers.
