Bennett v. Taylor

In Bennett v. Taylor, the owner of the Brame-Bennett House, a property listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, sought to enjoin construction of a State highway segment that was to run in front of the house. Over the years, virtually all of the highway except the 4.5-mile stretch at issue in this case had been improved using Federal funds. Although Federal funds had been committed previously for the segment at issue, the Federal officials had withdrawn the commitment in 1967. The project now was to be funded solely with State money. There had been no compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act or the National Environmental Policy Act.

The court found that during the time that the highway segment was designated to receive Federal funds, the house was not listed in the Register. By the time the house had been listed, the Federal commitment had been withdrawn. The court concluded that there was no Federal undertaking that would trigger Section 106 of NHPA because there was no further commitment of Federal funds, no Federal review or approval was required, and no Federal agency was involved in the design or construction of the road.

The court dismissed the action.