AUSTIN – The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Center for the American Future Director Robert Henneke issued the following statement on the Texas General Land Office’s (GLO) intervening in Aderholt, et al. v. Bureau of Land Management, et. al., which challenges the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) unconstitutional and arbitrary seizure of thousands of acres of private property along the Red River in Texas:
“I commend the Commissioner of the General Land Office for his leadership in standing against BLM’s unlawful land grab along the Red River,” said Henneke. “As described in GLO’s complaint in intervention, this federal overreach hurts not just the individual landowners represented by the Center for the American Future, but all Texans. By its seizure of acreage inside of Texas, BLM is taking mineral interest revenue away from the public school children of the State of Texas.”
TPPF’s Center for the American Future represents individual property owners, the counties of Wichita, Clay, and Wilbarger, and the Clay County Sheriff in the lawsuit.
The federal government is attempting to take thousands of acres of Texas land from homeowners and ranchers along the Red River. According to the Bureau of Land Management, the land is inside the river and is therefore public land. However, the south bank of the river is about a mile north of where the government says it is. Furthermore, many Texans live on that land, and many others make their livelihoods from farming and ranching on it. These Texans have lived and paid taxes on the land for generations, and they have titles and deeds going back to the 1800s.
For more information on the dispute and lawsuit please visit:www.RedRiverPropertyRights.com
To schedule an interview with Mr. Henneke, please contact Caroline Espinosa at [email protected] or 512-472-2700.
The Honorable Robert Henneke is the Director of the Foundation’s Center for the American Future. A rising star of conservative litigation, Henneke has had several of his winning cases result in published court opinions. Prior to joining the Foundation, he served the people of Kerr County as the twice-elected County Attorney where he brought conservative values to county government. As an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Texas, Henneke had a perfect win record in defending Texas, its elected officials, and agencies against federal lawsuits. Henneke is a member of the State Bar of Texas and is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit as well as all Texas Federal District Courts. He is also a proud Eagle Scout.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin, Texas.