* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Burnett
A Resolution Entitled
A Council Resolution concerning
title
Request for State Action - Establish a Maryland Constitutional Right for Environmental Justice and Equity
For the purpose of calling on the General Assembly to pass and the Governor to support House Bill 517, which would enable an amendment to the Maryland Constitution guaranteeing clean air, clean water, a stable climate, and a healthy and more equitable environment for all Marylanders to be placed on the ballot for referendum by Maryland voters.
body
Recitals
The right of all Marylanders to clean water, clean air, stable environment, and a healthy and more equitable environment is not assured or protected in either the State or the United States Constitution.
The federal government has failed to adequately address these issues and is instead overseeing an unprecedented rollback of critically important laws and policies. Indeed, recently, the Baltimore Sun has reported that federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has begun to back away from its statutory requirements to protect our Chesapeake Bay.
Maryland is nationally recognized as an environmental leader in terms of policies that protect against the worst impacts of environmental degradation, but state agencies no longer have the resources to enforce our laws designed to protect public health and the environment.
Notwithstanding the progress the State has made, 88% of Marylanders live in counties that do not meet clean air standard...
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