Title: Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the ratification of Pennsylvania's Environmental Rights Amendment.
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
This resolution recognizes the 50th anniversary of the ratification of the Environmental Rights Amendment in Pennsylvania.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 410 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 410

Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the ratification of Pennsylvania's 
                    Environmental Rights Amendment.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 18, 2021

   Ms. Dean (for herself, Mr. Evans, Ms. Houlahan, and Ms. Scanlon) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                          on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the ratification of Pennsylvania's 
                    Environmental Rights Amendment.

Whereas, on May 18, 1971, Pennsylvania voters ratified article 1, section 27 of 
        their constitution, commonly referred to as the ``Environmental Rights 
        Amendment'';
Whereas the amendment guarantees the people of Pennsylvania the right to clean 
        air, pure water, and the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic, 
        and esthetic values of the environment;
Whereas the amendment ensures Pennsylvania's public natural resources are the 
        common property of all the people, including generations yet to come;
Whereas, with the amendment, the Commonwealth became trustee of these resources 
        and shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people;
Whereas the joint resolution which proposed the amendment had unanimous support 
        in both the Pennsylvania House and Senate, and was approved by 
        Pennsylvania voters with a four-to-one margin;
Whereas the ballot measure had broad support from numerous organizations 
        including the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, the 
        Pennsylvania Bar Association, the Pennsylvania League of Women Voters, 
        and the Pennsylvania Environmental Council;
Whereas the amendment made the Pennsylvania government responsible for the 
        environment, giving the public the ability to compel the government to 
        act through legal means;
Whereas the ratification of the amendment established the right to a healthy 
        environment as important and necessary as other constitutional rights in 
        Pennsylvania;
Whereas the amendment was created to protect Pennsylvania's environment and 
        natural resources from further devastation caused by a lack of 
        environmental regulation for over a century; and
Whereas those in the Pennsylvania State government, specifically Representative 
        Franklin L. Kury, worked tirelessly to pass the amendment through the 
        Pennsylvania General Assembly and advance it on the primary ballot to 
        provide Pennsylvania's environment with permanent protection in the 
        Commonwealth's constitution: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the 50th anniversary of the ratification of 
        the Environmental Rights Amendment in Pennsylvania;
            (2) recognizes the broad support the amendment had among 
        Pennsylvania citizens and government;
            (3) acknowledges this amendment is crucial to the 
        protection of Pennsylvania's environment and natural resources;
            (4) supports the values espoused by the amendment, 
        including the notion of the right to clean air and pure water, 
        and the Commonwealth's responsibility in preserving the 
        environment for future generations; and
            (5) recognizes the conservation of environment is key to 
        the future success of the United States.
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