Special laws apply only to specific groups or organizations, unlike general laws. They address important issues affecting social institutions, industry regulation, and environmental issues. Some jurisdictions limit their use to prevent the passing of too many laws. Special laws must promote the public good and not serve selfish interests.
A special law, sometimes called a “private law” or “local law,” refers to a law that applies only to a specific group of people or an organization. In this way it is different from the general law, which applies to all who are under the jurisdiction of the elected body that made the law. For example, the crime of murder is a general law. A special law may be drafted to address the concerns or needs of a particular locality within a larger region or a specific government institution or body.
The uses of special law are many and varied. These laws often address important issues affecting social institutions. They can be enacted to fund or replenish pensions for government employees such as police, firefighters and educators. They are often used to authorize emergency funds for hospitals or highway departments that weren’t in their original budgets.
They are also important in the areas of industry regulation and environmental issues. They have added extra burdens to a specific industry or provided incentives to do things that will have a positive impact on the environment or public health in general. With ever-increasing population and expansion, municipal annexations are also subject to special law.
Many jurisdictions do not allow the use of special laws where an existing general law might apply. Some states severely limit the use of this type of law in their constitutions. In general, these provisions were originally drafted to ensure that the legislature did not pass too many laws or spend too much time on local issues rather than those affecting a large region or the entire state. Some legislators attempt to balance these concerns by allowing the use of these laws only in areas of medium to large populations.
With the many laws that currently exist, it can sometimes be difficult to decide whether a special law is really needed in a particular case, which is when examining the historical reasons for limiting these laws can be helpful. One fear about special laws was that powerful people, including those who made the law, could use it for selfish ends. Another was that they could be used to oppress classes of people who were held in disfavour. If the law responds to a real need, it is intended to ward off a social harm or address a specific social evil; there is no concern for selfish interests. If the intent of the law is to promote the public good in a way that a general law cannot, then it is usually considered necessary.
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