Liberty to Build

Local land‑use permitting and approval rules effectively determine who has the practical freedom to found factories, build houses, or open businesses; public hearings are a visible symptom, but the legal incentives embedded in zoning and permit regimes are the structural barrier. Recasting these regulatory constraints as a liberty issue shifts attention from episodic politics to durable law and institutional reform. — Framing building permissions as a liberty right reframes housing, energy, and infrastructure shortages as constitutional and institutional problems, broadening the coalition and legal arguments for permit reform.