Also known as: police power · regulatory power · § 362(b)(4) exception
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A state's inherent authority to enact and enforce laws protecting public health, safety, morals, and general welfare. The power justifies land-use restrictions when classifications are reasonable and substantially related to those ends. It also creates exceptions to private-law duties such as those of life tenants when compliance with a valid regulation is required.
Parker Phillips owned several parcels inside city limits. The city enacted a comprehensive zoning ordinance that placed his land in a residential district and barred commercial development. Parker sued, claiming the restriction violated due process. The court upheld the ordinance because the residential classification bore a substantial relation to public health and general welfare.
Patricia Patel held a life estate in a rural parcel. A new county health ordinance required removal of an abandoned well to prevent contamination. Patricia refused, arguing the work would diminish the remainder interest. The court held that the police power regulation created a privilege to perform the required act even though it would otherwise breach her duty to the remaindermen.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Yes. A life tenant is privileged to perform any act required by a valid police power regulation even if the act would otherwise violate duties to remaindermen under sections 138 and 140.
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Section 362(b)(4) exempts from the automatic stay actions by a governmental unit to enforce its police or regulatory power. The exception protects essential governmental functions that serve the common weal over debtor fresh-start interests.
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Yes. A state may require individuals to undergo vaccination against contagious diseases. Such laws are constitutional exercises of the police power to protect public health and may override individual liberty interests in refusing treatment.
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