Proposed model laws to restrict fossil collecting on private land in the US

[DPS Ammonite]

A recent article by US law student, Bridget Roddy, published in a Texas A and M law journal proposes model laws severely controlling fossil collecting on private land in the US. Be on the lookout for states trying to implement these or similar laws.

 

Aside, a good way to read articles is to read the abstract/introduction and summary/conclusion first, then look at the rest.

 

On page 505, she says, “This model law would (1) vest all paleontological resources on state-owned land to the state; (2) allow the state the opportunity to take possession of fossils found on private land within the rights of the landowner, namely just compensation as described in the Takings Clause of the Constitution; (3) apply monetary penalties to any destruction of private land in search of fossils or the destruction or defacement of the fossils themselves; and (4) require state approval for any excavations on private land through permits requiring individuals to be qualified to conduct a search and provide extensive context for their finds so that their research can be reproduced.”

 

Regarding point (1) of model law: states already control the fossils on their state-owned land. Some allow casual collecting of fossils, others don’t. Regarding point (2): the “Takings Clause of the Constitution” is also referred to as eminent domain. The government can take private property under certain conditions and must compensate the owner. 

 

In addition, Roddy proposes that fossil sales to private individuals could be heavily taxed. On pages 497-498, she proposes that states including New York State impose additional taxes on fossils sold including those sold at the large auction houses. New York State can have taxes up to 100 percent of the value of the item. The tax could be waived if a museum bought a fossil. The net result could be to drive down the price of fossils and to make it cheaper for a museum to buy them.

 

She proposes on pages 504-505 that laws in states such as Alabama and New Mexico that protect antiquities and archeological resources on private land could also be used to protect fossils if the term paleontological resources were added to their laws. Be wary of governments adding paleontological resources or the like to their existing antiquities laws in order to control fossils on private lands.

 

Please be civil with your comments, no libelous remarks since we are discussing an article written by a law student.

 

Roddy, Bridget. 2022. Can You Dig It? Yes, You Can! But at What Cost?: A Proposal for the Protection of Domestic Fossils on Private Land, 8 Tex. A&M J. Prop. L. 473. Available at: https://doi.org/10.37419/JPL.V8.I4.3

 

 

https://scholarship.law.tamu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1200&context=journal-of-property-law