Rumors have it that Senator Don Balfour has withdrawn his name from co-sponsoring the albatross of proposed Republican legislation known as "SB-5." This is a bill that, along with being 50 times longer in length than the Gettysburg Address, is chock-full of legal traps that point to the granting of "eminent domain" powers to common, garden-variety developers.

This is the bill that Neal Boortz has been slamming. This is the bill whose chief sponsor, Senator Dan Moody, defended in the well of the Senate by accusing the bill's detractors of not fully reading the bill before raising an alarm.

In a statement released this afternoon, Senator Balfour stated: "I will not support this Senate Bill...Some legitimate questions have been raised by my constituents regarding this proposed legislation. While I do not believe that the intent of Senate Bill 5 was to expand the use of eminent domain, this legislation needs to be clearer on that issue."

"Eminent domain rights should be strictly limited to roads and utilities. Many areas of the country have expanded their eminent domain practice to the detriment of their community and we want to prevent that happening in Georgia."

Senator Balfour said that he would support Senate Bill 86 instead. Senate Bill 86 has been sponsored by Senator Chapman (R-3) to further restrict the use of eminent domain.