Compensation for injury to the remainder shall be based on the project as proposed. Any features of the project which mitigate the damage or provide benefit to the remainder, including but not limited to easements, crossings, underpasses, access roads, fencing, drainage facilities, and cattle guards, shall be taken into account in determining the compensation for injury to the remainder.
§ 1263.450.Features Mitigating Damage Or Providing Benefit
Title 7. Eminent Domain Law · Chapter 9. Compensation · Article 5. Compensation for Injury to Remainder · Enacted 1975 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1263.450 bases compensation for injury to the remainder on the project as the plaintiff proposes it, and requires the court to account for any project features, such as access roads, fencing, or drainage, that mitigate damage or provide benefit to the remainder.
Full Text of § 1263.450
Plain-English Summary
This section closes out Article 5 by anchoring the whole remainder analysis to a single reference point: the project as the plaintiff has proposed to build it.
That anchor matters because plaintiffs frequently design projects with features meant to soften their impact on neighboring land. The statute makes sure those design choices count. Easements, crossings, underpasses, access roads, fencing, drainage facilities, and cattle guards -- along with any other project feature that mitigates damage or provides a benefit to the remainder -- all get taken into account in setting the compensation for injury to the remainder.
The effect is to reward careful project design with a lower severance-damage bill, and to make sure a project that includes real mitigation measures gets credit for them rather than being valued as if those features didn't exist.
Frequently Asked Questions
What project is used to calculate compensation for injury to the remainder?
The project as the plaintiff has proposed it, under § 1263.450.
Do features like access roads or fencing reduce the severance damage award?
Yes, if they mitigate the damage or provide a benefit to the remainder, they're taken into account under § 1263.450.
Is the list of mitigating features in this section exhaustive?
No. The section lists examples -- easements, crossings, underpasses, access roads, fencing, drainage facilities, and cattle guards -- but is not limited to them.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1975, Ch. 1275.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: mitigation features severance damage eminent domainaccess roads fencing condemnation compensation