PROPOSAL 5 Page 1 of 1
2024
SENATE CHAMBER
PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION
OF THE STATE OF VERMONT
Offered by: Senators Bray, Hardy and Perchlik Subject: Conservation and development; right to a clean environment PROPOSAL 5
Sec. 1. PURPOSE
This proposal would amend the Constitution of the State of Vermont in
order to provide that the citizens of the State have a right to a clean environment.
Sec. 2. Article 23 of Chapter I of the Vermont Constitution is added to read:
Article 23. [Right to a clean environment]
That the people have a right to clean air and water and the preservation of
the natural, scenic, and cultural values of the environment. The State of
Vermont’s natural resources are the common property of all the people. The State shall conserve and maintain the natural resources of Vermont for the benefit of all people.
Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE
The amendment set forth in this proposal shall become a part of the Constitution of the State of Vermont on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November 2026 when ratified and adopted by the people of this State in accordance with the provisions of 17 V.S.A. chapter 32.
VT LEG #371742 v.1