JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon says the US government may need to seize private property to fuel one of its most high-profile initiatives.
In a new annual letter to shareholders, Dimon says government agencies could evoke eminent domain and forcibly obtain private property to propel the push for clean energy.
“Massive global investment in clean energy technologies must be done and must continue to grow year-over-year.
At the same time, permitting reforms are desperately needed to allow investment to be done in any kind of timely way. We may even need to evoke eminent domain – we simply are not getting the adequate investments fast enough for grid, solar, wind and pipeline initiatives.”
Dimon says recently passed legislation including the Inflation Reduction Act have the potential to create more than $1 trillion in clean technology development.
But he believes immediate action and a serious sense of urgency is needed to effectively implement clean energy policies in a timely manner.
“Polarization, paralysis and basic lack of analysis cannot keep us from addressing one of the most complex challenges of our time. Diverse stakeholders need to come together, seeking the best answers through engagement around our common interest. Bolstering growth must go hand in hand with both securing an energy future and meeting science-based climate targets for future generations.”
Local, state and federal agencies all have the power to utilize eminent domain to allocate private property.
The Trump administration organized the most recent federal effort to enact eminent domain in its push to build a wall along the US-Mexico border.
A study from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) says the administration seized 135 private tracts of land in Texas by either signing agreements with the owners or by going to court to seize their property.
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