The NYU Brennan Center State Court Report published an article titled "Using State Constitutions to Combat Exclusionary Zoning," authored by Ilya Somin and coauthored with Joshua Braver. The article builds on their 2024 work, including a Texas Law Review article and a shorter version in The Atlantic, which argued that most exclusionary zoning violates the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment by requiring just compensation when the government takes private property.

Exclusionary zoning, which restricts land use and limits housing types, is identified as a leading cause of the housing crisis in many parts of the United States. Approximately 70 percent of all residential property in the U.S. is zoned exclusively for single-family residences. Combined with other restrictions such as minimum lot sizes and parking mandates, this zoning makes it difficult or impossible to build new housing in high-demand areas, particularly those attractive for job and educational opportunities.

The article explains how state constitutional law offers a promising path to reform that other approaches cannot easily match. The Brennan Center's invitation to publish a piece based on the longer academic article, even before it was posted and submitted to journals, indicates widespread interest in this topic.

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