State Ex Rel. Kempthorne v. Blaine County

79 P.3d 707, 139 Idaho 348, 2003 Ida. LEXIS 119, 2003 WL 21697752
CourtIdaho Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 23, 2003
Docket28710
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 79 P.3d 707 (State Ex Rel. Kempthorne v. Blaine County) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State Ex Rel. Kempthorne v. Blaine County, 79 P.3d 707, 139 Idaho 348, 2003 Ida. LEXIS 119, 2003 WL 21697752 (Idaho 2003).

Opinions

WALTERS, Justice.

The State filed a complaint seeking a declaratory judgment that school endowment lands are exempt from local zoning regulations. The district court awarded summary judgment to Blaine County and the Interve-nors against the State, subjecting school en[349]*349dowment lands to local zoning laws. We reverse the decision of the district court.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

The subject of this appeal is a tract of school endowment land located in Blaine County known as the Ohio Gulch parcel. The Idaho State Land Board, which controls and manages school endowment lands, entered into an agreement that continued for many years, allowing the County to operate a landfill on the parcel. The Land Board also authorized the County to sell excess fill for the payment of royalties and at various times permitted third parties to extract and remove sand and gravel from the parcel.

In 1998 and 1999, Gary McStay was conducting extraction and removal of sand and gravel under a lease with the State. In September of 1999, Blaine County served McStay with a Cease and Desist Order, forbidding further extraction and removal of sand and gravel, which activities the County claimed were in violation of zoning laws. The order informed McStay that he should not resume his activities except pursuant to a conditional use permit from the County. The State Department of Lands director became involved and wrote to the County directing that the County remove zoning overlays from endowment lands in Blaine County. The letter also stated that the County was acting beyond its legal authority in requiring McStay to obtain a conditional use permit.

Although McStay did apply for a conditional use permit, his request was denied by the Planning and Zoning Commission. In part, the Commission’s findings recognized that a gravel extraction operation on the property was not inconsistent with objectives set forth in the County’s comprehensive plan, but stated that a master plan produced in conjunction with the state and after citizen input was necessary to fully understand the competing residential and industrial uses in the area. The decision, which was appealed by McStay, was ultimately affirmed by the Board of County Commissioners.

The State then filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in the district court. The sole issue to be resolved was whether endowment trust lands are subject to or immune from local zoning regulations—a decision that would have far-reaching impact. The State filed a motion for partial summary judgment. Blaine County and Intervenors filed cross-motions for summary judgment. On June 12, 2002, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of the County and the Intervenors. The district court held that school endowment lands are generally subject to state legislation enacted pursuant to the police power; the legislation subjecting the school endowment lands to local zoning ordinances does not violate Article IX, Sections 7 and 8 of the Idaho Constitution; and school endowment lands are subject to the provisions of the Local Land Use Planning Act (LLUPA) and local zoning ordinances enacted thereunder.

On appeal, the State challenges the district court’s holding that endowment trust lands are not immune from local zoning regulations. The State argues that the application of zoning laws to endowment trust lands is constitutionally and statutorily prohibited.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

When an appellate court reviews an order granting summary judgment, it employs the same standard used by the district court originally ruling on the motion. Kelso v. Lance, 134 Idaho 373, 374-75, 3 P.3d 51, 52-53 (2000). A summary judgment is properly granted when the moving party shows there is no genuine issue of material fact and is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. I.R.C.P. 56(c). The filing of cross-motions for summary judgment does not establish, of itself, that there is no genuine issue of material fact, especially where the opposing motions seek summary judgment upon different issues or theories. Garcia v. State Tax Comm’n of State of Idaho, 136 Idaho 610, 613, 38 P.3d 1266, 1269 (2002).

DISCUSSION

At issue is the interpretation of Article IX, Sections 7 and 8 of the Idaho Constitution and the Local Land Use Planning Act (LLUPA), specifically I.C. § 67-6528, to determine whether state endowment lands [350]*350are exempt from or subject to local zoning ordinances. We note at the outset that generally, the statutory rules of construction apply to the interpretation of constitutional provisions. Sweeney v. Otter, 119 Idaho 135, 138, 804 P.2d 308, 311 (1990); Lewis v. Woodall, 72 Idaho 16, 18, 236 P.2d 91, 93 (1951); Higer v. Hansen, 67 Idaho 45, 52, 170 P.2d 411, 415 (1946). It is also well established that when a case can be decided upon a ground other than a constitutional basis, the Court will not address the constitutional issue unless it is necessary for a determination of the case. Olsen v. J.A. Freeman Co., 117 Idaho 706, 710, 791 P.2d 1285, 1289 (1990). We begin, therefore, with an analysis of the relevant statutes enacted by the legislature, which we assume did not overlook the provisions of the constitution in designing the legislation. See Johnson v. Diefendorf, 56 Idaho 620, 625, 57 P.2d 1068, 1073 (1936), quoting Grice v. Clearwater Timber Co., 20 Idaho 70, 117 P. 112 (1911). See also Idaho State AFL-CIO v. Leroy, 110 Idaho 691, 698, 718 P.2d 1129, 1136 (1986)(holding that in the absence of a legislative invasion of constitutionally-protected rights, the judicial branch of government must respect and defer to the legislature’s exclusive policy decisions).

The statute provides in part that “[t]he state and all its agencies, boards, departments, institutions, and local special purpose districts, shall comply with all plans and ordinances adopted under this chapter unless otherwise provided by law.” I.C.'§ 67-6528. The State interprets the final phrase, “unless otherwise provided by law” as creating an exemption for the Land Board, to whom exclusive management and control of school endowment lands have been given, pursuant to the state constitution. The County disputes the State’s interpretation, arguing that the legislature could have expressly exempted the Land Board had it so intended, in the same way it excused the transportation board and public utilities from compliance.1

Article IX, § 7, of the Idaho Constitution establishes the state board of land commissioners “who shall have the direction, control and disposition of the public lands of the state; under such regulations as may be prescribed by law.” Article IX, § 8, of the Idaho Constitution defines the duty of the board of land commissioners “to provide for the location, protection, sale or rental of all lands ...

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State Ex Rel. Kempthorne v. Blaine County
79 P.3d 707 (Idaho Supreme Court, 2003)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
79 P.3d 707, 139 Idaho 348, 2003 Ida. LEXIS 119, 2003 WL 21697752, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-kempthorne-v-blaine-county-idaho-2003.