Asheville v. State. This case is outside the normal scope of this blog, but it’s a big case.

In 2013, the state adopted a law requiring the transfer of Asheville’s municipal water system to the Metropolitan Sewerage District. The City challenged the law, arguing that the law was unconstitutional because

(1) the Transfer Provision is a “local law” relating to “health,” “sanitation” and “non-navigable streams,” in violation of Article II, Section 24;

(2) the Transfer Provision violates Asheville’s rights under the “law of the land” clause found in Article I, Section 19; and

(3) the Transfer Provision constitutes an unlawful taking of Asheville’s property without just compensation in violation of Article I, Sections 19 and 35.

The trial court agreed. The TL;DR version of the Court of Appeals decision can be found in this quote from the opinion:

We disagree.

Unsurprisingly, the city plans to appeal.