Government Abuse of Building Permit Power

The Cato Institute Daily Podcast for 14 May 09 features Tim Sandefur, an adjunct scholar at Cato, discussing examples of local government abusing their control of building permits to deny the permit requester the right to vote or to charge them exorbitant fees. Permits are supposed to be the means to eliminate public safety hazards, but they are actually now used for much more. They are used with high fees to reduce general taxes. They were used in the most famous case on such matters to impose beach access for the general public over the land of a family who wanted a permit to add a second story to their home. That case went to the Supreme Court, where the argument that the home blocking the view of the beach from the highway was ruled no excuse to impose an unrelated requirement for a public easement on the property owners.

The featured issue in the podcast is that of the Griswolds of Carlsbad, CA. They wanted a permit to add two rooms to their home for their grandchildren when they came visiting. Carlsbad said they would grant the permit if the Griswolds would give up their right to vote "No" on property assessments! You might think this is really unreal. But, similar permit cases in Santa Rosa, CA and Missoula, MT have occurred in which the requester was required to give up the right to vote if they were to receive the permit.

While we are the subject of permits, I will add that permits are also used as a tool to enforce building codes, many of which require the use of expensive and old-fashioned materials which are difficult to install. These requirements are often not updated often and are designed to require the permit requester to use expensive, licensed tradesmen. They are also designed to keep pre-built housing from competing with the local builders who will hire local workers. In reality, permits and building codes are used for many purposes other than safety purposes. They are another tool in the hands of the power seekers in local government.