Supreme Court Appears Likely to Side With Landowners in Fee Case

The US Supreme Court signaled a narrow victory for property owners challenging permitting fees while leaving the tougher issues for another day.

The court, following argument on Tuesday, seemed likely to say there’s no automatic exemption for fees passed by a legislature and generally applicable to all landowners, as opposed to those enacted by permitting officials on particular property owners.

That’s because even the California county that assessed the fees agreed there’s no such categorical exception. There’s “radical agreement” on that question, Justice Elena Kagan said.

But the case still presents issues that could call into question taxes and tolls ...