Arkansas Game & Fish Commission v. United States

Background

A state wildlife agency owned and managed a 23,000-acre forest and hunting preserve along the Black River. From 1993 through 2000 the Army Corps of Engineers repeatedly released water from an upstream dam at lower fall rates, extending high river levels into the spring and summer growing season. The agency said the repeated seasonal flooding damaged or destroyed more than 18 million board feet of hardwood timber and changed the land’s character, forcing costly restoration. After a trial, the Court of Federal Claims found the flooding was severe, foreseeable, and caused major timber loss, awarding about $5.7 million. The Federal Circuit reversed, holding that temporary flooding could not be a taking.

Reasoning

The Supreme Court rejected a blanket rule that temporary floodings cannot be a taking. It explained that temporary or repeated government actions can be compensable and that each case demands a fact-based inquiry. Key factors include how long and how often the floods were, whether the harm was foreseeable, the severity of the interference, the character of the land, and the owner’s reasonable expectations. The Court said flooding should not be treated differently from other government intrusions.

Real world impact

The decision means landowners may seek compensation when government-caused floods recur and substantially impair property, even if each flood was labeled temporary. The case returns to lower courts to resolve disputed facts about causation, foreseeability, and damages under the Court’s guidance.

Dissents or concurrances

No Justice wrote a separate opinion in this decision and one Justice took no part; the Court issued a single majority opinion reversing the Federal Circuit and sending the case back for further factual work.