America’s Founders, tired of having the fruits of their labors confiscated by an overpowering British government, declared themselves free and independent.Most Americans can recite the claim that “… all men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights … to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Less familiar are these lines from the British Declaration of Independence:”He [King George III] has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance …. He has combined with others to subject us, … imposing taxes on us without our consent.”What did the founders consider to be the real cornerstone of man’s liberty and happiness? On what basic premise was the Constitution devised? Property rights?John Adams said, “The moment the idea is admitted into society that property is not as sacred as the laws of God … anarchy and tyranny commence. Property must be secured or liberty cannot exist.”James Madison said, “Government is instituted to protect property of every sort. … This being the end of government, that is NOT a just government, nor is property secure under it, where the property which a man has … is violated by arbitrary seizures of one class of citizens for the service of the rest.”Their guiding principle was that people come together to form governments to secure their rights to property – not to create an entity. What was wrong for individual citizens to do to one another was equally wrong for government to do. The right to own property and keep the rewards of individual labor opened the floodgates of progress and independence for the benefit of the entire human race.Is the modern day king in America the government?Let me cite an example. In 2006, a bill had a drafting error that caused thousands of properties in seven counties to be held captive by a toll road company and the state.Unfortunately, county clerks permanently recorded toll road notices and maps and disclaimers of interest on the private property records of thousands of property owners within the seven affected counties – without their consent.Since this mistake, many property owners are unable to sell their properties, refinance or subdivide their properties because of the toll road encumbrances on their titles. Many property owners have been advised their property values have decreased because of the toll road encumbrances. Other property owners ask why they should pay their entire tax bill when the value of their property has been adversely affected.Neither the toll road company nor the state of Colorado has compensated the property owners for the encumbrances. To add insult to injury, the toll road project has not been approved by any government agency. It may never be approved! It is unfair and unconstitutional to slander the title of thousands of property owners for a private toll road project that may never be built.The citizens of House District 19 who are affected either want the toll road documents removed from their titles or they want to be compensated for their losses. In the name of fairness and equity, I plan on running a bill this year that will clean up the titles, correct the mistake in the law and allow the law-abiding citizens in the corridor to secure their rights to their property. If you have been negatively affected by the toll road encumbrances on your titles, contact me at MarshaLooper@gmail.com or call me at 238-5600. For information on previous articles, visit WWW.GOMARSHA.ORG, click messages. Thank you for the privilege to serve you!
