United States of America upon the relation and for the use of the Tennessee Valley Authority v. An Easement and Right-of-Way Over 2.14 Acres of Land, More or Less, in Tipton County, Tennessee et al

Filing 11

ORDER granting 4 Motion to Deposit Funds; granting 4 Motion for Entry of an Order of Possession. Signed by Judge Samuel H. Mays, Jr on 08/21/2012.

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
WESTERN DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA upon
the relation and for the use
of the TENNESSEE VALLEY
AUTHORITY,
Plaintiff,
v.
AN EASEMENT AND RIGHT-OF-WAY
OVER A TOTAL OF 2.14 ACRES OF
LAND, MORE OR LESS, IN TIPTON
COUNTY, TENNESSEE, AND JIMMY
C. ERWIN, and ANN ERWIN,

Defendants.

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No. 11-cv-02847

ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR ENTRY OF AN INVESTMENT
ORDER AND ORDER OF POSSESSION

Before

the

Court

is

Plaintiff

the

United

States

of

America’s (the “Government”) September 30, 2011 Motion for Entry
of Investment Order and Order of Possession.
No. 4; see also Pl.’s Mem., ECF No. 4-1.)

(See Motion, ECF

Defendants Jimmy C.

Erwin and Ann Erwin (collectively, the “Defendants”) have not
responded and the time to do so has passed.

W.D. Tenn. Civ. R.

7.2 (“The response to the motion . . . shall be filed within 14
days after service of the motion.”).

The Government seeks an

order for: (1) immediate possession of the 2.14 acre easement in
Tipton

County,

investment

of

Tennessee

$8,000

to

(the

be

“Easement”);

deposited

account with the Clerk of Court.

in

and

an

(2)

the

interest-bearing

For the following reasons, the

Government’s Motion is GRANTED.
I.

Background

On September 28, 2011, the Government filed a Notice of
Condemnation under the Tennessee Valley Authority Act, 16 U.S.C.
§§

831-831ee

(2006

&

Supp.

Condemnation, ECF No. 1.)

III

2009).

(See

Notice

of

The Government seeks to condemn a

parcel of land that belongs to Defendants subject to a lien for
2011 county taxes.

(See Easement Description, ECF No. 1-1; see

also Compl. ¶ 6, ECF No. 1-3.)
Tennessee

Valley

Authority

The Government, on behalf of the

(“TVA”),

filed

Taking under 40 U.S.C. §§ 3114-18 (2006).
Taking,

ECF

No.

1-5.)

In

the

a

Declaration

of

(See Declaration of

Declaration

of

Taking,

the

Government describes the Easement, states that $8,000 is the
TVA’s estimate of the “just and liberal compensation for the
easements and rights-of-way taken,” and claims that the Easement
is being taken for the “erection, operation, and maintenance of
electric
circuits.”
II.

power

transmission

circuits

(Id. ¶¶ 1, 2, 4.)
Standard of Review

2

and

communication

Under 16 U.S.C. §§ 831-831ee, the Declaration of Taking Act
applies to condemnation proceedings brought under the TVA Act.
See United States ex rel. TVA v. An Easement & Right-of-Way Over
4.47 Acres of Land, No. 11-2842, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 137426,
at

*2

(W.D.

Tenn.

Nov.

30,

2011)

(“[T]he

Court

finds

that

Plaintiff has complied with the requirements of 16 U.S.C. §§
831-831ee

and

16

U.S.C.

§

831c(i),

which

provide

that

the

Declaration of Taking Act applies to condemnation cases brought
under the TVA Act.”).

The Declaration of Taking Act requires

the Government to file “a declaration of taking signed by the
authority empowered by law to acquire the land described in the
petition, declaring that the land is taken for the use of the
Government.”

40 U.S.C. § 3114(a).

The declaration of taking

must include:
(1) a statement of the authority under which, and the
public use for which, the land is taken;
(2) a description of the land taken that is sufficient
to identify the land;
(3) a statement of the estate or interest in the land
taken for public use;
(4) a plan showing the land taken; and
(5) a statement of the amount of money estimated by
the acquiring authority to be just compensation for
the land taken.
Id.

On filing the declaration of taking and disposition in the

court:

3

(1) title to the estate or interest specified in the
declaration vests in the Government;
(2) the land is condemned and taken for the use of the
Government; and
(3) the right to just compensation for the land vests
in the persons entitled to compensation.
Id. § 3114(b).

Courts are given discretion to “fix the time

within which, and the terms on which, the parties in possession
shall be required to surrender possession to the petitioner.”
40 U.S.C. § 3114(d)(1).

The Supreme Court has concluded that,

upon compliance with the provisions of the Declaration of Taking
Act, “[t]itle and right of possession thereupon vest immediately
in the United States.”

Kirby Forest Indus., Inc. v. United

States, 467 U.S. 1, 5 (1984).
III. Analysis
The Government argues that it should be granted an order of
immediate

possession

because

it

has

requirements of 40 U.S.C. § 3114(a).

complied

with

the

The sole inquiry before

the Court is whether § 3114(a) has been satisfied.
The

public

“erection,

use

operation,

envisioned
and

for

the

maintenance

of

Easement
electric

transmission circuits and communication circuits.”
of Taking ¶¶ 1, 2, 4.)
valid.

is

the
power

(Declaration

The Government’s use of the Easement is

See, e.g., United States ex rel. TVA v. 15.69 Acres of

Land, 589 F. Supp. 2d 1349, 1359 (N.D. Ga. 2008) (“The TVA Act

4

specifically grants . . . the power to acquire real estate for
the construction of transmission lines.”)
marks omitted).

(internal quotation

The Government states the authority under which

and the use for which the Easement is taken and provides a map
and written description of the Easement.
Taking

¶¶

1,

4,

5;

Declaration

(See Declaration of

Attachment

1

–

Easement

Description, ECF No. 1-6; Declaration Attachment 2 – Right-ofWay Map, ECF No. 1-7.)
provided,

via

Federal

Express in the amount of $8,000 to the Clerk of Court.

(Id. ¶

2.)

and

the

A statement of just compensation is

Government

has

sent

a

check

These actions are sufficient to satisfy the requirements of

§ 3114(a).

See An Easement & Right-of-Way Over 4.47 Acres of

Land, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 137426, at *1-3 (granting an order
of possession where the Government described the public use as
the construction of transmission lines, the just compensation
was tendered, and authority was claimed under the TVA Act and
the Declaration of Taking Act).
Because the requirements of § 3114(a) have been met, the
Government shall have immediate possession of the Easement, as
described

in

the

Complaint,

Declaration of Taking.

Notice

of

Condemnation,

and

The Clerk of Court is ordered to invest

$8,000 in an interest-bearing account until the appropriateness
of the compensation amount can be determined.

See United States

v. Easements & Rights-Of-Way Over a Total of 3.92 Acres of Land,
5

No. 2:07-CV-142, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 101181, at *1-2 (E.D.
Tenn. Sept. 24, 2010) (addressing the just compensation for an
easement after an order of possession had been entered and the
case had been tried).
IV.

Conclusion

For

the

foregoing

reasons,

the

Government’s

Motion

is

GRANTED.
So ordered this 21st day of August, 2012.

s/ Samuel H. Mays, Jr.__ __
SAMUEL H. MAYS, JR.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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