Vermont § 5227 - Sport shooting ranges; municipal and State authority

§ 5227. Sport shooting ranges; municipal and State authority

• (a) “Sport shooting range” or “range” means an area designed and operated for the use
  of archery, rifles, shotguns, pistols, skeet, trap, black powder, or any other similar
  sport shooting. (b) The owner or operator of a sport shooting range, and a person lawfully using the range,
  who is in substantial compliance with any noise use condition of any issued municipal
  or State land use permit otherwise required by law shall not be subject to any civil
  liability for damages or any injunctive relief resulting from noise or noise pollution,
  notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary. (c) If no municipal or State land use permit is otherwise required by law, then the owner
  or operator of the range and any person lawfully using the range shall not be subject
  to any civil liability for damages or any injunctive relief relating to noise or noise
  pollution. (d) Nothing in this section shall prohibit or limit the authority of a municipality or
  the State to enforce any condition of a lawfully issued and otherwise required permit. (e)(1) In the event that the owner, operator, or user of a range is not afforded the protection
  set forth in subsection (b) or (c) of this section, this subsection shall apply. A
  nuisance claim against a range may only be brought by an owner of property abutting
  the range. The range shall have a rebuttable presumption that the range does not constitute
  any form of nuisance if the range meets the following conditions: (A) the range was established prior to the acquisition of the property owned by the person
  bringing the nuisance claim; and (B) the frequency of the shooting or other alleged nuisance activity at the range has
  not significantly increased since acquisition of the property owned by the person
  bringing the nuisance claim. (2) The presumption that the range does not constitute a nuisance may be rebutted only
  by an abutting property owner showing that the activity has a noxious and significant
  interference with the use and enjoyment of the abutting property. (f) Prior to use of a sport shooting range after dark for purposes of training conducted
  by a federal, state, county, or municipal law enforcement agency, the sport shooting
  range shall notify those homeowners and businesses with property abutting the range
  that have requested such notice from the range. (g) If any subsection of this section is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect
  the other subsections of this section that can be given effect without the invalid
  subsection, and for this purpose, the subsections of this section are severable. (Added 1991, No. 20; amended 2001, No. 61, § 71, eff. June 16, 2001; 2005, No. 173 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 22, 2006.)