People's Amendment - Peoples Amendment

THE PEOPLE'S AMENDMENT

PREAMBLE

We the People of the United States do hereby establish this People’s Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America.

By this amendment it is decreed that the sole purpose of the government of the United States shall be to serve the people and the environment. The government shall have the authority to act, regulate, and legislate only on behalf of the security, safety, and welfare of the people and the environment.

By this People’s Amendment, the government of the United States shall be empowered to act if and only if the action is deemed necessary by the people to:

Benefit the health, security, and welfare of the people
Preserve the environment and conserve natural resources
Place the well-being of the people and the environment ahead of the interests of corporations, elected representatives, the government, and the military.

This shall be accomplished through the enactment of the following:

SECTION l: FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

A. The Executive Branch.

1.The Executive Branch shall uphold the Constitution, the laws of the United States, and international law in times of peace, in times of war, and during a national emergency. The Executive Branch shall respect the Separation of Powers contained in the Constitution.

2. The Executive Branch shall not escape oversight of Congress or the people of the United States.

3. Laws or bills that have increased Presidential powers or eliminated oversight of the Executive Branch as delineated in the United States Constitution shall be abolished.

4. The Executive Branch shall uphold the international law set forth in the Geneva Conventions and shall not authorize the torture of prisoners, whether they are U.S. citizens or not.

5. All Presidential papers shall become public eight years after a President leaves office.

6. A President, Vice President, or member of the Executive Branch or support staff shall be subject to prosecution for criminal acts performed in office. No statutes of limitation shall apply and there shall be no Presidential pardon.

B. The Legislative Branch

1. The U.S. Congress shall give priority to laws and actions that benefit the people of the United States and create transparency in their decisions regarding the laws governing the United States.

2. There shall be no earmarks or riders attached to bills. Each bill must address one subject only.

3. Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to U.S. Senators and Representatives. Congress shall make no law that applies to Senators and Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States.
In addition, elected representatives shall not receive free medical coverage or other benefits until a national health care system is in place.

C. The Judicial Branch

1. The Supreme Court and the Judicial Branch shall confine their actions to constitutional mandates.

2. Justices of the Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice, shall be limited to a total of two seven-year terms.

D. Economics

1. The federal government shall act to balance the budget, reduce national debt, and eliminate inflation in the U.S. economy.

2. The Federal Reserve Bank shall be nationalized and run by the federal government. The national debt owed to the Federal Reserve shall be canceled.

3. The Glass-Steagall Act shall be reinstated in its entirety.

4. The federal government shall return to the gold standard.

5. Large denominations of currency, such as $500 and $1000 bills, shall be returned to circulation. The penny shall be eliminated.

6. The privatized Federal Reserve Bank shall restrict the creation of dollars to inhibit inflation.

7. The federal government shall provide negative incentives for any company that seeks to ship U.S. jobs overseas. The government shall reestablish tariffs on all goods imported into the United States. An additional ten percent tax shall be imposed on goods from American corporations that have outsourced manufacturing jobs abroad during the last 10 years.

8. Neither federal, state, nor local governments or the military shall buy foreign products if American-made equivalents are available.

9. No branch of government shall pay more than market value for goods or services. The products purchased must be bio-preferred, if possible, and include the “greenest” products available.

10. Government accounting methods must meet the same standards as mandated for publicly traded corporations.

E. Military

1. The budget for military spending and the Pentagon shall be reduced to no more than double that of any other country. The military shall institute a bidding process for all contracts signed. “No-bid” contracts are expressly forbidden.

2. The U.S. shall not maintain more than two hundred military bases on foreign soil.

3. Reservists shall not be subject to multiple call-ups for service or forced to serve beyond the requirements of their original contracts.

4. Posse Comitatus shall be restored.

F. Foreign Relations

1. The United States shall not invade or attack other countries unless invaded or attacked first.

2. The U.S. military and all government agencies are prohibited from entering a foreign nation for the purpose of drug interdiction.

3. There shall be no free trade agreements.

4. The federal government shall comply with all of the provisions of the Geneva Conventions.

G. Privatization

1. No branch of government, including the U.S. military, regulatory, or administrative bodies or agencies or parts thereof, deemed responsible for the common good of the people of the United States, shall be allowed to be privatized.

2. No public infrastructure shall be sold to any private party or corporate interest. All such sales that have taken place in the last ten years shall revert to public ownership at the original price.

3. Private, for-profit corporations, domestic or foreign, shall not be allowed to take over the duties of U.S. agencies. Government programs funded by taxpayer dollars shall not be administered by private, for-profit corporations.

H. Taxes

1. The tax code shall be simplified so as to be readable by all citizens.

2. Corporations that benefit from the commons should be taxed appropriately for the use of the commons. These revenues will be used to pay for a national health care system and for the protection and restoration of the environment. A corporation may not evade their responsibility to restore public lands after that corporation has exploited the land and its resources.

3. Tax codes shall be altered such that there are no state, federal, or local taxes imposed on commodities necessary for basic survival. This includes, at minimum, food, water, shelter, and energy.

4. Social Security income shall not be taxed.

5. Federal and state inheritance taxes shall be repealed for estates valued under $50 million. Corporate taxes shall be increased to cover the loss of inheritance tax revenues.

6. There shall be no gift taxes on the transfer of money to immediate family members.

7. The Internal Revenue Service shall not audit anyone with a gross income of $50,000 or less.

8. The Internal Revenue Service shall give its highest auditing priority to large corporations.

9. Corporate taxation shall account for a minimum of forty percent of Internal Revenue Service income.

10. Inflation must be taken into account on the sale of any real or depreciable asset to compute capital losses and gains.

11. Any and all medical expenses, including expenses for so-called “alternative medical treatments,” shall be tax deductible, regardless of an individual’s income.

12. Any state that collects a state income tax shall do so as a percentage of the federal return and shall not require a separate return with different rules and exemptions.

13. The threshold for the Alternative Minimum Tax8 shall be adjusted annually for inflation, using the date of inception as a baseline.

14. No private debt agency or other corporate entity shall be allowed to collect taxes in the United States.

I. The Food and Drug Adminstration and Environmental Protection Agency

1. The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) mission shall be altered to encourage a non-pharmaceutical approach to medicine. Prevention of disease and the safety of food and pharmaceutical products shall be its primary focus.

2. The FDA shall authorize all pharmaceuticals to be tested for efficacy, toxicity, and overall safety. The FDA shall rely upon the outcome of independent research and not research conducted by or paid for by the manufacturer or associated industry.

3. The FDA, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Consumer Product and Safety Commission (CPSC) shall authorize independent testing to determine whether a drug or food is safe for human and domestic animal consumption, is non-toxic, is non-polluting, and does not harm the environment. Any drug or food product found to be harmful to humans, animals, or the environment shall not be produced, sold, traded, donated, or exported abroad.

4. The FDA shall not approve for distribution, sale, or marketing any product found to be toxic or unsafe.

5. The FDA shall test the toxicity of food, cosmetics, perfumes, and toiletries within ninety days of submission.

6. The FDA and other federal agencies shall be prohibited from regulating or exercising jurisdiction over products that are deemed harmless and non-toxic.

7. The FDA and other federal agencies shall be prohibited from pressing criminal charges against anyone for dispensing or using products that are non-toxic or harmless, and shall be prohibited from confiscating said products.

8. The FDA shall have no jurisdiction over interstate commerce.

J. Social Security

1. The National Social Security Fund shall be protected in perpetuity and shall never become privatized.

2. The legislature shall be prohibited from enacting any budgetary or other legislation that will take funds from Social Security for purposes other than those for which Social Security was intended.

SECTION ll: ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT

A. Representatives

1. It shall be a felony for an elected, appointed, or hired representative of the federal government to protect or promote corporate or political interests over those of the health and well-being of U.S. citizens and the environment.

2. An elected, appointed, or hired representative of the federal government who delays or blocks an investigation into a representative’s activities or records shall be removed from office upon completion of the investigation.

3. An elected, appointed, or hired representative of the federal government who knowingly breaks the law may be subject to lawsuits by U.S. citizens.

4. There shall be no statute of limitations for any crime committed by a person while holding a public office, whether the person is elected, appointed, or hired.

5. Corporate lobbying shall be prohibited.
Until this is implemented, no former President or Vice President shall be allowed to work as a lobbyist or for a company that engages in lobbying, or use his special position to unduly influence legislation. No former Senator or Representative shall be allowed to work as, or for, a lobbyist or seek to influence legislation or the workings of government for a period of twelve years after leaving office.

6. Elected and appointed U.S. representatives, including the President and Vice President, shall be forbidden from accepting money or other gifts that could conceivably influence government process.

7. Any confidentiality agreement between a U.S. citizen and the government or a corporation shall become void if the contract conflicts with the health, welfare, and well-being of the public or the environment.

8. Whistleblowers shall be protected from lawsuits, criminal charges, loss of employment, and other negative consequences of their actions in disclosing government or corporate wrongdoing.

9. Any confidentiality agreement between a U.S. citizen and the government or a corporation shall be made void if the contract conflicts with the health, welfare, and well-being of the public or the environment.

10. Whistleblowers shall be protected from: losing their jobs, lawsuits, criminal charges, and other negative consequences of their actions in disclosing governmental or corporate wrong-doing.

B. Federal Agencies

1. No federal agency shall be so self-contained that its rulings cannot be outweighed by Congressional action or a vote of the American people.

2. The federal government and its representatives, bureaus, and agencies shall restore full transparency to their decision-making. The federal government will inform the public of the background and reasoning for regulations promulgated by its staff.

3. There shall be no “revolving door” between regulatory agencies and the industries they regulate. No federal agency shall allow present or former employees or representatives from the industry it regulates to sit on any of the agency’s committees or advisory panels.

4. Employees of any regulatory agency are prohibited from working for the regulated industry for a period of 10 years after leaving the agency.

5. All government contracts shall be put out for competitive bid and not be privately awarded.

6. The government shall not surreptitiously experiment on people for any reason, whether for medical research, to test for toxins, or to establish the vulnerability of individuals or groups. This ban includes, but is not limited to, anything that could conceivably be harmful to humans or the environment.

SECTION III: ELECTIONS

A. Voting

1. Every U.S. citizen shall have the right to vote.

2. Voting shall be mandatory for all U.S. citizens. A U.S. citizen who does not vote in a public election shall be fined $25. Funds collected from such fines shall be applied towards the financing of campaigns.

3. To increase voter turnout, Election Day in any county, state, or federal election shall be declared a holiday.

4. The Electoral College shall be eliminated to give the proper one-person, one-vote representation in Presidential elections.

5. Exit polling shall be mandated in every election with an automatic recount if there is a two-percent discrepancy from official results. Exit poll results shall be withheld until all polling stations are closed.

6. Election records shall be freely open to the public. U.S. citizens shall monitor elections and election records, including, but not limited to, ballot counting. Access to records must be timely—before elections are certified. (credit: blackboxvoting.org)

7. Equal and non-discriminatory access to voting shall be assured for all voters. Personal identification shall not be required to vote.

8. Voting shall be private. There shall be no opportunity for any party to ascertain how a citizen has voted. Barcodes on mail-in ballots shall be prohibited because they may expose a citizen’s voting choices to polling officials or others.

9. No person or entity shall be allowed to interfere with, stop, or intimidate a registered voter from casting a ballot. Anyone found guilty of intimidating voters, interfering with an election, or tampering with votes shall be sentenced to a minimum of 5 years in prison.

10. Members of a national party convicted of tampering with elections, intimidating voters, or obstructing voting shall lose all votes in the county of occurrence. If tampering occurs statewide, said party will be forbidden from soliciting votes in the state during the next similar election.

11. The President, Vice President, and every appointee of the President, including Supreme Court Justices, shall be immediately removed from their positions if it is found that the President, Vice President, or members of their party committed fraud in the election of the President.

12. All ballots for city, county, state, and federal elections must be preserved and available for recount for a period of five years.

13. Neither private companies nor publicly held corporations shall manage or operate elections, vote counts, or election information.
At minimum a private election management company shall be subject to the same Freedom of Information Act requirements as public agencies and shall be subject to citizen oversight and monitoring of election records, and ballot counting. FOIA transparency shall include proprietary software and all internal communication pertaining to elections.

14. Private election management companies shall be forever prohibited from doing business in the United States if it is found that any officer, director, employee, or representative of the company is convicted of tampering with the vote.

15. The U.S. Elections Assistance Commission shall be eliminated.

16. County, city, state, and federal elections shall use an Instant Run-off Election system if a candidate does not receive more than fifty percent of the vote.

17. Voters shall be allowed to express their dissatisfaction with candidates or choices of candidates. The category, “None of the above,” shall appear on ballots and these votes shall be tallied.

B. Campaigns

1. The U.S. Treasury shall finance Presidential and Vice Presidential elections. Financing for U.S. Congressional campaigns shall come from the treasury of the state in which the candidate resides. States, counties, and cities shall mandate public financing for those running for elected office. Public monies shall be divided equally among all qualified candidates. Qualified candidates may come from any party with more than 100,000 voting members across the United States, and not just from the Democratic or Republican parties.

2. Money or support shall not be contributed to any political campaign.
Until a ban on lobbying is implemented, political action committees, corporations, Section 527 non-profit organizations, and lobbyists shall be banned from giving money, seed money, soft money, and gifts or in-kind contributions of any kind to a candidate or campaign, and shall be banned from working for or against a candidate.
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3. A U.S. citizen may make a maximum contribution of $50 in seed money to a candidate or as regards an election issue.

4. A citizen must collect 100,000 signatures to qualify as a Presidential candidate. A qualified candidate for any other office is a citizen who can raise a to-be-determined threshold amount of seed money and/or signatures on a petition.

5. Television and radio stations shall give free and equal campaign airtime to qualified candidates.

6. The non-profit Commission on Presidential Debates, controlled by the Democrats and Republicans, shall be replaced. The federal government shall establish a Commission on Debates comprised of all qualified parties. Qualified parties shall be those that have more than 100,000 voting members in the United States.

SECTION lV. CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS

A. Denial of Constitutional Freedoms

1. Any constitutional right or freedom lost through legislation, Presidential order or other directive, shall immediately be restored.

2. A denial of constitutional rights or freedom shall be declared a felony. This includes denial of constitutional freedom stemming from an Executive Order of the President and actions of Congress, the Supreme Court, or officer of the law.

B. First Amendment

1. Freedom of speech and the right to peaceful assembly are constitutional rights and shall be guaranteed by law. No one shall be arrested, lose their job, or be sued for expressing a point of view.

2. “Free-speech zones” intended to stifle dissent from government policies or actions shall be declared unlawful.

3. No one shall be arrested or put on “no-fly” lists for speaking out against the government, or for disagreeing with, or participating in protests against the President, Vice President, or elected representatives or their policies. “No-fly” lists shall be eliminated.

4. The federal and state governments and their agencies shall be forbidden from identifying, profiling, scanning with facial recognition software, listing in a database, detaining, or attacking any protestor for exercising the constitutional right to free speech and peaceful assembly.

C. Second Amendment

1. The U.S. government shall not limit or track ammunition or small arm sales. Ammunition and small arms shall be freely and affordably available to all U.S. citizens.

D. Fourth Amendment

1. U.S. citizens shall be guaranteed the right to privacy, as implied by the Fourth and Ninth Amendments.

2. There shall be no warrantless searches or electronic surveillance of people’s homes, property, communications, computers, or medical and financial records. All citizens shall be secure in their personal, financial, legal, physical, and medical activity. Internet activity shall not be monitored.

3. Absent a current warrant, the U.S. government, corporations, or agents thereof shall not spy upon or accumulate data on U.S. citizens. All prior data accumulated in violation of Fourth Amendment and privacy rights shall be destroyed.

4. There shall be no sharing of the personal data of citizens by government, corporations, or other entities unless a citizen formally agrees to allow such data to be shared.

5. No government agency shall monitor financial transactions in any amount absent a current warrant.

6. Internet privacy shall be inviolate. Neither government nor industry shall be allowed to use the internet for collecting data on U.S. citizens.

7. “No-knock” practices by police departments and the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall be banned, absent a current warrant.

8. U.S. citizens shall not be mandated to carry national identity cards, with or without electronic chips. Microchips shall not be implanted in the body of any U.S. citizen for any reason.

E. Unconstitutional Legislation and Presidential Orders and Directives.

1. The Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act, the 2007 National Defense Authorization Act, the 2007 National Security Presidential Directive 51, Homeland Security Presidential Directive 20, and other unconstitutional Presidential orders and directives shall be revoked.

2. Any constitutional right or freedom taken away by the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act, or other legislation or Presidential order or directive shall be immediately restored.

F. Fifth Amendment

1. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.

2. There shall be no confiscation of assets without trial and conviction.

G. Eminent Domain

1. Property taken by eminent domain shall be used only for public infrastructure, and not in support of commercial or private development.

2. Federal, state, and local governments are prohibited from using eminent domain, expropriation, or condemnation to transfer private property from a landowner to another person, entity, or corporation without the landowner’s consent.

H. Eighth Amendment

1. Cruel and unusual punishment shall be prohibited by law.

2. No person, whether a U.S. citizen, foreign national, or enemy combatant, shall be subjected to excessive punishment or torture.

3. The use of capital punishment and all forms of torture shall be prohibited.

I. Habeas Corpus

1. The right to Habeas Corpus13 under Section 9, Article I of the Constitution shall be guaranteed for every U.S. citizen, enemy combatant, and foreign citizen.

J. Citizens' Right to Enact and Veto Legislation

1. U.S. citizens shall have the right to enact and veto legislation that has been signed into law. Citizens shall enact this right by petitioning and voting on said legislation.

K. Citizens' Right to Recall President and Vice President

1. U.S. citizens shall have the right to recall and remove the President or Vice President from office by a sixty percent majority of votes. If the President or Vice President is removed, a replacement shall be appointed according to the Articles of Succession contained in the U.S. Constitution.

2. In any election, voters shall have the opportunity to recall their elected representative by a sixty percent majority of votes. If the elected representative is removed from office with a sixty percent majority vote, then the appropriate state legislature may appoint a replacement until an election can be held.

3. U.S. citizens shall have the right to remove any federally appointed official by a sixty percent majority of votes, including members of the Cabinet, heads of federal agencies, and U.S. Supreme Court Justices.

L. Corporations shall not possess constitutional rights.

1. Corporate entities shall no longer be granted constitutional rights possessed by U.S. citizens.

SECTION V: RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF CITIZENS

A. Laws

1. There shall be no prosecution of victimless crimes. This amendment shall not apply to traffic violations, including drunk driving.

2. Marijuana shall be legalized and the war on soft drugs shall cease. There shall be an immediate pardon and release of those in prison for the use, sale, and growing of marijuana.

3. No sexual act between consenting adults shall be illegal.

4. Gay marriage shall be legalized. All rights allowed to heterosexual domestic partners and married couples shall extend to gay and lesbian domestic partners and married couples.

5. Fines for misdemeanor violations shall be minimal and should not appear on record.

6. Children shall not be tried as adults under any circumstances.

B. Citizens' Rights

1. Every U.S. citizen shall have the right to a decent home. The government shall provide housing for homeless people.

2. Every U.S. citizen shall have the right to adequate protection from the economic fear and insecurity of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment.

3. Upon reaching the age of eighteen, all citizens shall engage in one year of public service, and shall be paid at least the current minimum wage for such work.

C. Consumer Bill of Rights

1. Interest charged on credit card debt and loans of any form shall be capped at prime plus ten percent, regardless of the term of the loan. There shall be no variable rate loans or point charges.

2. Late fees or penalties on personal debt shall be prohibited if interest continues to be compounded on a debt. Hidden fees shall be prohibited.

3. Bankruptcy shall be permitted in the case of debt incurred for medical expenses.

4. There shall be no limitations on corporate liability. This particularly includes, but is not limited to, pharmaceutical and medical industries.

5. The federal government shall establish and rigorously enforce “Do Not Junk Mail,” “Do Not Junk Fax,” “Do Not Phone,” and “Do Not Spam” lists.

D. Employment Bill of Rights

1. Every employee, including those who work in private homes, shall be entitled to an annually recalculated and realistic minimum wage set by Congress, regardless of the location and job.

E. Medical Bill of Rights

1. The federal government shall create a national health care program and provide free medical care to all U.S. citizens.

2. All hospitals and health insurance companies shall revert to non-profit status.

3. So-called “alternative” and natural healing modalities shall hold legal status in the United States and shall be covered by medical insurance. Unlicensed practitioners shall be required to provide consumers with disclosures.

4. Doctors shall have the right and obligation to advise patients about alternative or natural therapies, substances, or procedures.

5. Patients shall have full access to all health care information pertaining to treatments, products, and other health and survival issues.

6. Patients shall have access to any and all non-toxic substances, drugs, and homeopathic remedies intended for healing or treatment of any disease or health condition.

7. No federal, state, or local government shall mandate vaccinations, procedures, medicine, or treatment for children or adults. Parents shall have the right to determine appropriate treatments for their children and shall not be subject to prosecution for selecting an unconventional medical course of action.

8. Individuals shall have the right to make all of their own decisions about their health care.

9. Assisted suicide shall be legal; however, counseling must be provided to anyone who seeks to take his or her own life.

10. Licensed, practicing doctors and alternative practitioners shall not be allowed to accept gifts, money, or marketing materials from pharmaceutical or drug companies. Doctors who have in the past received compensation from a pharmaceutical or drug company shall disclose such information to their patients.

11. Until a national health care system is in place, no patient shall be charged more than an insurance company or Medicare would pay for a medical service, procedure, or drug.

F. Educational Bill of Rights

1. The right of every U.S. citizen to a high quality education is hereby established. An equally high quality education shall be standard throughout the nation.

2. The financing of education shall have the third highest federal and state priorities, following health care and the environment.

3. Starting at the middle school level, the school curriculum shall include mandatory classes in environmental science, renewable energy production, alternative health modalities, nutrition, organic gardening and farming, survival and self-defense skills, yoga and meditation, personal finance management, and principles of “green” construction.

4. Interest on student loans shall be capped at two percent with no hidden fees or additional charges.

G. Prison Reform and Prisoners' Bill of Rights

1. Every prisoner shall receive training in green collar jobs. At least twenty-five percent of prison labor shall be devoted to ecological restoration and to growing organic food for local schools, hospitals, and the prison system.

2. State universities shall develop and administer college courses for prisoners. Educational credits earned by a prisoner shall be transferable to an accredited university. College credits earned by prisoners shall allow prisoners to earn time off their sentences.

3. Prisons shall not be privatized or run for profit. All privately-owned or operated prisons shall be transferred to, and owned and operated by, municipal, state or federal governments.

4. Private for-profit corporations shall not be allowed to use prison labor in the course of business, unless prisoners agree to volunteer to work for the corporation. A minimum or higher wage shall be paid to prisoners for such service.

5. Shackling of prison mothers during birth shall be banned.

6. Prisoners shall have the right to health care that they deem beneficial, including “alternative” therapies.

7. Prisoners shall not be moved more than fifty miles from their families without their family’s agreement.

8. All prisoners shall hold full rights to family visitation.

SECTION Vl: ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS AND DUTIES

A. Citizens and the Environment

1. It shall be illegal to produce, sell, or use toxic household products or chemical pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides.

2. Every United States citizen shall be encouraged to reduce energy use.

3. It shall be forbidden to dump a toxic chemical into sewers, drains, or toilets, including toxic chemicals meant to unclog drains or toilets, hazardous household products, and pharmaceutical drugs.

4. Chemical and hazardous waste shall be properly disposed of at a hazardous waste facility.

B. Business and the Environment

1. Industries shall not pollute the environment—the air, oceans and other waters, or land—with chemicals known to harm people, wildlife, or the environment. If the toxicity or carcinogenicity of a chemical is unknown, the chemical shall be banned until its safety is determined. The government shall collect and make available a list of chemicals produced by U.S. manufacturers. The list shall include the chemical, tons produced, and the impact of the chemical on human health and the environment.

2. Research and testing done by the industry or industry-paid consultants shall not be used to determine whether a chemical is safe, non-toxic, and non-polluting.

3. The government shall be charged with publishing the total amount of toxic waste emitted into the environment and the location of said toxic waste. Local residents shall be notified if toxic waste of more than one-hundred pounds has been emitted into a community’s environment.
Until industries and corporations stop polluting the environment, they must disclose all toxic materials and hazardous waste that they emit into the air, oceans and other waters, and land and publish this disclosure in their annual reports, as well as report the amount and types of chemicals to the government. There shall be no minimum reporting requirements, as is the case with the current Toxics Release Inventory.

4. The cost for cleanup of any industrial spills or pollution will be borne in full by the industry that caused it, not by the American people. Any corporation or subsidiary thereof judged to be the responsible party for polluting the air, water, or soil shall pay the costs of all outstanding environmental cleanups immediately and in full, and shall be barred from bidding on government contracts until such cleanup is complete and paid for.

5. Industry and corporations shall be fully liable for the cost of disease, illness, or death caused by their actions, products, policies, or emissions.

6. Unused pharmaceuticals and by-products shall be treated as hazardous waste.

C. The Commons and the Ecosystems

1. Watersheds and air sheds shall be protected, regardless of ownership status.

2. Corporate use of the commons is a privilege for which the people of the United States shall be reimbursed at fair market value for the resources. The commons include airwaves and natural resources on, over, or under public lands. Natural resources include but are not limited to fossil fuels, air, minerals, groundwater, natural waterways, trees, and forests. Such reimbursement shall reflect the true value of the resource and shall be used to restore the environment and fund a national health program.

3. Any corporation that uses the commons shall fully mitigate all environmental impacts upon the air, water, and land.

4. Mining, logging, and other economic activity that destroys the environment shall be prohibited in national parks and areas of environmental concern.

5. There shall be no clear-cutting of public forests, or mountain top removal of resources on public lands.

D. Oceans

1. The U.S. national ocean policy shall focus on prevention of runoff of point and non-point sources of pollution, restoration of fisheries and marine species, and restoration of kelp, sea grass, mangrove, reef, salt marsh and coastal communities and environments, and other areas that provide habitat for fish and marine species. The policy will mandate laws to prohibit plastic and trash from flowing into the ocean and address a plan to clean up ocean garbage patches. U.S. policy shall also address dead zones off U.S. coastal areas.

2. By 2012 the federal government shall designate coastal marine sanctuaries wherever fish stocks have plummeted to less than twenty percent of historic levels. Fishing, mining, or extraction of resources shall not be allowed in the sanctuaries.

3. The federal government shall work with fishermen to assure sustainable fisheries and fish populations.

4. The federal government shall ban fishing for any species whose numbers have decreased to twenty-five percent or less of its historic levels.

5. Destructive fishing practices that damage marine habitats or are responsible for significant incidental catch shall be banned. These fishing practices include, but are not limited to, dragnets, bottom trawling, and long-lines.

6. Fish farms shall be managed so as to have no impact on natural ocean habitat or pose a threat to ocean fish, marine species, or human health.

7. Ships shall be forbidden from dumping any material into the ocean, including untreated sewage or gray water. Treated sewage and gray water will be allowed providing they have not been treated with toxic substances.

8. Fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides from farms, along with chemicals from factories, shall be prohibited from entering the ocean.

9. Mining shall be prohibited on the ocean floor and in the oceans. Offshore drilling shall be banned.

10. Cities shall be prohibited from dumping untreated sewage and untreated gray water into the ocean or tributaries. All sewage and gray water shall be processed to standards that do not harm public health or the environment.

11. The military shall be prohibited from using sonar or other technologies that disturb marine mammals and disrupt their behaviors.

E. Energy

1. The federal government shall begin immediately, and with all available resources, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by seventy-five percent by 2015 and ninety percent by 2018.

2. The federal government shall undertake a massive project for the development of non-polluting, carbon-neutral, and renewable sources of energy, such as solar, wind, and mechanical power. The highest priority shall be placed on developing renewable energy and mechanical sources located in homes and other buildings.

3. The project shall also encourage the development of carbon-neutral, renewable energy sources, including automotive fuel sources, through tax incentives and subsidies.

4. The federal government shall establish a carbon tax on non-renewable fuels for any entity, corporation, or person that extracts and sells fuels from the earth. The tax shall be based on the carbon content of the non-renewable resource. Funds from the tax shall be used to fund research into alternative and sustainable energy development. The tax should be high enough to discourage the extraction of non-renewable fuels.

5. There shall be no program that mandates carbon credits. Instead, there shall be carbon emission limits placed on all industries.

6. Public utilities shall be operated for the benefit of the public and the environment, and shall not be used for profit.

7. Gas mileage and emissions standards in all motorized vehicles must equal the most stringent existing standards worldwide by 2015. Priority shall be given to the development of alternative sources such as electric or compressed air vehicles.

8. Government shall mandate stringent energy and fuel efficiency, pollution controls, and noise suppression standards. This mandate shall apply to all electric and combustion appliances, equipment, and devices, including such items as shop vacuums, leaf blowers, jet engines, and marine diesels.

9. By 2012 the government shall mandate that electric filters be placed on all electric appliances, equipment and computers to limit the intrusion and impact of electromagnetic fields into homes and offices.

10. Government and industry shall reduce electromagnetic field emissions and radiation by sixty percent by 2015.

11. Conventional light bulbs shall be phased out by 2015.

12. There shall be no new nuclear installations until the problem of nuclear waste disposal has been remedied. Funding that has already been approved for development, research, or new construction shall be reallocated to zero-point energy research.

F. Environmental Law and Policy

1. The federal government shall develop a program to replace toxic chemicals with substances that have little or no environmental or health impacts. The federal government shall initiate a “green chemistry” program to develop non-toxic replacements for toxic chemicals.

2. The government shall ban all emissions of toxic chemicals into the environment by 2018.

3. No action shall be taken to approve a technology or chemical until it is proven safe. Government representatives shall not knowingly, or through inaction, cause injury to a person or the environment.

4. Products and packaging shall not contain ingredients toxic to humans or the environment. This prohibition includes a ban on any substance known to cause cancer or other disease or disorder, or affects the development of a fetus.
Until such prohibition is in place, manufacturers shall list, on the package, all ingredients in food, drugs, cosmetics, perfume, and toiletry products that are toxic to humans or animals, in bold, red type. Manufacturers shall list on the package of consumer products the type and weight of toxic substances used in processing and manufacture of the product and the amount of greenhouse gases created.

5. No corporate welfare, tax breaks, depletion allowances, or subsidies in any form (from federal, state, or local governments) shall be paid or allowed to any for-profit corporation, business, or industry that produces toxic chemicals, depletes natural resources, engages in the extraction of non-renewable resources, or produces energy from the consumption of non-renewable resources.

6. Products of nanotechnology shall ultimately be banned. At minimum, the government shall conduct research to ensure such products are safe for consumption, are non-toxic, and could not in any way endanger people or the environment. The government shall not rely on tests or research conducted by the industry that produces the products, or by industry consultants.

7. No branch or department of government, including the Department of Homeland Security or the military, shall be exempt from any environmental law.

8. The federal government shall encourage family planning to address the growing population problem.

9. American corporations operating abroad shall be subject to all U.S. environmental and health regulations, regardless of the location of production and sales.

10. The Endangered Species Act shall not be altered in fact, law, or policy to benefit corporations or other institutions at the expense of the natural world. The U.S. has the highest number of endangered and extinct species in the world and shall act so that no additional species becomes endangered or extinct.

G. Sustainability

1. In all of their decisions, federal, state, and local governments shall consider environmental sustainability, including the sustainability of all living species under their jurisdiction.

2. Federal, state, and local governments shall develop economies that are based on the sustainability of ecosystems.

3. Cities shall not allow land within their borders to be developed into new suburban sprawl.

H. Green Building

1. By 2015 all new residential and commercial construction shall meet or exceed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, and shall use non-toxic and recycled building materials that are hypoallergenic and comply with standards for low water and energy use.

2. Refitting or rehabilitation of any government building shall incorporate green building techniques and materials, and alternative energy sources.

3. Material from all large deconstruction projects shall be recycled. All major construction projects shall use as much recycled material as possible.

4. Any traditional construction method that has a demonstrable history and track record shall be permitted for residential and light industrial application. (Examples of traditional construction methods include cob, straw bale, wattle and daub, rammed earth, adobe, light straw, earth bag, and others.)

5. All new construction shall incorporate gray water recycling, purification, and storage systems.

SECTION VII: FOOD, NUTRITION, AND AGRICULTURE

A. Food, Water, and Beverages

1. Strict food safety laws and stringent standards for pesticide, herbicide, fungicide, and chemical fertilizer content in food shall be established and enforced. The federal government shall ensure that all food, water, and beverages are non-toxic to humans and the environment.
Until the latter becomes codified all domestic and imported food shall bear a label identifying the specific pesticide, herbicide, or fungicide used to grow the crop, whether the food contains genetically modified components, and the quantities contained in the product.

2. The U.S. shall not participate in the Codex Alimentarius in any form.

3. Genetically modified and nanotechnologically-engineered organisms shall be banned from the U.S. food supply and shall not be fed to livestock or farm animals.
Production of genetically modified and nanotechnologically-engineered organisms shall not be introduced into the food chain or permitted in any industrial process or application.

4. Monosodium glutamate (MSG), transfats, artificial coloring, artificial flavoring, artificial preservatives, and high fructose corn syrup shall be banned in food products that are imported, sold, or manufactured in the U.S.

5. No food, substance, or device banned in the U.S. shall be produced for export to a foreign country.

6. All food served in school cafeterias and hospitals shall be locally produced and organic.

7. There shall be no junk food, fast food, candy, or soft drinks sold in any school or within three hundred yards of any school.

8. Fast and processed food advertising shall be subject to the same restrictions as tobacco advertising. There shall be no television advertising of junk food.

9. There shall be no fast food outlets in any government or public building, military installation or prison.

10. Fast and processed foods shall be taxed at a rate of fifty percent more than organic and other healthy foods. Tax revenues shall fund the national health care and Social Security systems. There shall be high taxation of all animal foods and derived foods, processed foods, GMOs, etc., because these are bad for humans and the environment.

11. All food bearing the “Organic” label shall be one hundred percent organic and non-GMO.
Until there is a total ban on toxic packaging, all organic food must be placed in non-toxic packaging or containers from production through point of sale.

12. Product packaging must be entirely biodegradable and sustainable.

13. Manufacturers of natural supplements and foods may make research-supported claims of health and nutrition.

14. Imported food shall be prominently labeled with the country of origin and the country where it was packaged.

15. Agriculture shall not be exempt from any environmental regulations, emission caps, or environmentally-related taxes.

B. Organic Farming and Agricultural Chemicals

1. All pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and fungicides shall be tested for toxicity, carcinogenicity, teratogenicity, and effects on infant development and mortality in humans and animals before they shall be allowed to be used on crops. Any pesticide or herbicide that is found to be toxic, to be carcinogenic, or cause birth defects in people or animals shall not be allowed to be manufactured or used in the United States, or exported to or imported from another country.

2. The mission of the U.S. Department of Agriculture shall be altered to encourage and promote small family farms, organic farming and ranching, the non-toxic production of food, and water-efficient irrigation systems.

3. Laws impeding organic farming and the non-toxic production of food shall be prohibited. The government shall not block the proper labeling and marketing of these products.

4. Subsidies, tax breaks, and incentives shall not be allowed to any large corporate agribusiness farm or any farming or ranching operation that uses non-organic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or fertilizers, or engages in unsustainable farming practices.

5. Subsidies, tax breaks, and incentives shall not be allowed for growing crops such as tobacco and sugar, due to adverse health or environmental impacts.

6. Fish, livestock, and any animal employed to feed human beings shall be raised under non-toxic, humane, and uncrowded conditions. Governments shall purchase animal products only from companies that do not cruelly confine animals, for example in gestation crates, veal crates, or battery cages. Mistreatment or abuse of farm animals or fish shall be punishable by law.

7. Waste and by-products from farm animals and fish shall be treated or recycled to have no or very low environmental impact.

8. Antibiotics and hormones, including growth hormones, shall be prohibited for use on animals meant for human consumption. Antibiotics may only be given to an animal that is sick or diseased.

9. Sick and diseased animals shall not be sold for human consumption. The USDA must notify the public if meat from sick animals has gone into the marketplace and where the meat has been sold.

10. The USDA shall draw up rules to mandate testing of all animals in the food chain—including all domestic livestock (cattle, sheep, etc.) and game animals (deer, elk, etc.)—for spongiform diseases (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, or “Mad Cow Disease,” Scrapies, etc.). One hundred percent of all test results shall be made public immediately.

11. Genetically modified plants and organisms, and nanotechnologically engineered organisms shall be banned from commercial use. There shall be no genetic engineering or cloning of any living organism. There shall be no testing of genetically modified plants or organisms in any location, except with the express written permission of all neighbors within a 10-mile radius surrounding the testing site and with the approval of the city, county, and state governments in which the testing is to occur, and with approval by the federal government.

12. Patents for seeds, plants, living organisms, and genes shall be banned. Existing patents for seeds, plants, living organisms, and genes shall be declared null and void.

13. “Terminator technology” and “terminator seeds” shall be prohibited for use in the U.S. and may not be exported to, sold, or given away to other countries.

14. Non-pasteurized milk and other products shall be made available, but they must provide a warning label.

SECTION VIII: SCIENCE AND THE PUBLIC

A. Research

1. No person or agency in the federal government shall interfere with, re-interpret, misinterpret, or tamper with scientific or medical investigations, conclusions, or results.

2. No study funded by a vested interest shall be published as fact and cited over impartial studies.

3. Research and science paid for in whole or in part by tax dollars shall belong to the American people. The results of such research may either be placed in the public domain or be licensed to the highest bidder for fair market value with revenues going into the national health care system or Social Security.
No corporation or industry shall profit from any drug, technology, or patent developed with taxpayer funding without payment of substantial royalties. Any such drug, technology, or patent shall be considered a part of the commons and licensing fees based on fair market value shall be paid into the U.S. Treasury and earmarked for the national health care system and Social Security.

4. It shall be illegal to withhold from the public or the government results from research funded in part or whole by taxpayers or non-profit organizations.

5. Findings of harm to humans or the environment, regardless of the source of funding, shall not be altered or withheld from the public. This applies to negative results of any research on the effects of drugs, chemicals, toxins, medical or other devices.

6. All shelved technology shall become public domain ten years after a patent is issued.

SECTION IX: CORPORATE AND INDUSTRY RESPONSIBILITIES

A. Corporate Ethics

1. Corporations shall be prohibited from lobbying or hiring lobbyists to influence legislation, regulation, federal agencies, federal agents, or elected representatives.

2. Corporations shall be fully accountable and bear full financial responsibility for their actions and impact on human health and the environment, with no limitation on corporate and individual liability.

3. Corporations shall guarantee their products are represented accurately in their advertising and marketing materials.

4. Corporations shall guarantee their products are not mutagenic, teratogenic, or toxic, nor contain toxic chemicals or components.

5. It shall be a crime, with penalties of life in prison without parole, for a corporation’s Chief Executive Officer, other officer or director, or the head (or other officer) of a regulatory agency to, with prior knowledge, allow a product that causes significant harm or illness to humans or significant injury to the environment to enter the market.

6. Corporate criminals shall be permanently barred from doing business with the federal government.

7. U.S. companies shall not subcontract domestic service obligations to offshore subcontractors without informing their customers and obtaining their approval.

8. Computerized phone answering systems shall be prohibited. Any corporation conducting business in the United States shall hire U.S. citizens residing in the United States to answer phones, and shall be prohibited from hiring people in other countries to answer phones on behalf of U.S. companies.

9. Corporations shall pay consumers twice the minimum wage for wait times on the telephone exceeding five minutes and for time lost by consumers on missed service appointments.

10. Financial records of corporations or government contractors paid in whole or in part by tax dollars shall be subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). FOIA transparency shall apply only to work done under government contract. Any company with a federal contract needs to be subject to FOIA as if it were a government agency.

B. Financial

1. U.S. corporations shall be forbidden from transferring profits to offshore or foreign subsidiaries for the purpose of avoiding payment of taxes.

2. Corporate tax records shall be made public.

3. Any foreign company with more than $20 million in sales a year in the U.S. shall form a domestic corporation and be subject to all of the rules, regulations, and taxation of U.S. companies.

4. U.S. companies shall not exploit foreign labor.

5. Any corporation with government contracts must have its headquarters and a majority of its employees and corporate officers located in the U.S., be registered in the U.S., and pay appropriate Social Security, Medicare, unemployment, and other taxes. Government contracts shall not be awarded to any company with headquarters outside the U.S. or its protectorates.

SECTION X: MEDIA, COMMUNICATIONS, AND THE INTERNET

A. Media

1. Anti-trust regulations shall be enforced in the media and communications industry. Laws and regulations regarding media ownership shall revert to pre-1970 rules.

2. There shall be no censorship of communications or the news.

3. The media shall not refuse progressive advertising.

4. If any broadcast news network or subsidiary is found to have deliberately and consistently falsified news, the network shall lose its right to broadcast on the public airwaves for one year.

5. Libel and slander laws equal to those in the United Kingdom shall be established and enforced.

6. Laws protecting and preserving the rights of reporters to protect their sources shall be upheld. No journalist shall be subject to a penalty for protecting a source of a news story.

7. The Freedom of Information Act shall be fully restored. Federal agencies shall not charge reporters in the U.S. or U.S. citizens for information requested under FOIA.

8. The advertising and marketing of drugs and pharmaceutical products shall be subject to the same restrictions as tobacco advertising.

B. Internet

1. Internet neutrality shall be inviolate. Government shall not block, delay, or interfere with internet traffic. The government shall not levy taxes on the internet.

2. Telephone, cellular, and cable companies and internet service providers (ISPs) shall not block, delay, or otherwise interfere with any internet traffic or content, except for what is clear and obvious spam.