9/2 Sign-On Letter to Protect Farming Exemptions from Municipal Regulations

The Vermont Supreme Court ruled on May 30, 2025, that farming is not exempt from all municipal regulation. Instead, the court interpreted the “ag exemption” in 24 V.S.A. § 4413(d)(1)(A) [the Municipal Zoning Statute] as a reference only to the policies and standards intended to reduce agricultural water pollution. The court concluded that municipalities may regulate all aspects of farming that do not relate to water quality, thereby setting a new precedent in stark contrast to the previous, statewide understanding that farming is exempt from municipal zoning regulations.  Rural Vermont, NOFA-VT, the Vermont Farm Bureau, the Vermont Association of Conservation Districts, and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets are collaborating to protect the agricultural exemptions. We are collecting signatures in support of changing the law to assert that food producers that the VT Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets determines to be farms and farming are exempt from municipal zoning and the Act 250 permit requirement. We are also gathering stories to demonstrate the importance of the farming exemptions from Municipal Zoning and Act 250 for the working lands community - please share any examples you have. 

Read the Letter and Sign On Here…
Read our Blog on this Ruling Here…