Tuesday, April 14, 2020

The Fifth Amendment, takings, and COVID

The Florida governor issued a 2 page executive order (pdf warning) that reads (in pertinent part):

Section 2. I hereby suspend and toll any statute providing for an eviction cause of action under Florida law solely as it relates to non-payment of rent by residential tenants due to the COVID-19 emergency for 45 days from the date of this Executive Order, including any extensions.
Section 3. Nothing in this Executive Order shall be construed as relieving an individual from their obligation to make mortgage payments or rent payments. 

The counties are interpreting this order to mean that NO evictions are permitted and are refusing to even serve process on any eviction cases whatsoever.

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings explained that the county is following that order.
“Evictions can’t be processed further by the clerk or served by the sheriff. What I’m saying to you is, there is no mechanism to evict people in the state of Florida. That won’t last forever, those property owners will be able to get their money,” Demings said.
So if I have a tenant that is destroying my property, I can't even have them evicted, even though the governor's order only prohibits evictions for nonpayment. So let's say that this order gets extended for another 30 days, which is likely. Now landlords are going to potentially miss out on months of income. Once they evict their tenant, the landlord will likely never see the money that they are owed.

While it seems like a kind gesture, remember that landlords have expenses, too. As soon as the government requires that one person provide something to someone else without recompense, you have established slavery. This is, IMO, a violation of the 5th Amendment's takings clause. You have deprived that land owner of the use of his own property for public use (controlling the pandemic) without reimbursement.

Demings, a Democrat, is married to US Representative Val Demings. She is most famous around these parts for losing her duty firearm in 2009 by leaving it in her unlocked patrol vehicle while serving as the Sheriff of Orange County. As the Sheriff, she punished herself by sending herself a strongly worded letter.

Democrats love three things:
1 Socialism
2 Gun Control
3 Exempting themselves from 1 and 2

What disappoints me is that the Governor is issuing these orders. I am fully upset with those who downplay  the threat posed by the Wuhan virus, but the threat of tyranny is far greater.

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