The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2024 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
Title 10 : Conservation and Development
Chapter 124 : Trade in Covered Animal Parts or Products
(Cite as: 10 V.S.A. § 5503)-
§ 5503. Exceptions
(a) The prohibition on the purchase, sale, offer for sale, or possession with intent to sell set forth in section 5502 of this title shall not apply:
(1) to employees or agents of the federal or State government undertaking any law enforcement activities pursuant to federal or State law or any mandatory duties required by federal or State law;
(2) when the activity is expressly authorized by federal law;
(3) when the covered animal part or product is a fixed component of an antique that is not made wholly or partially from the covered animal part or product, provided that:
(A) the antique status is established by the owner or seller of the covered animal part or product with documentation providing evidence of the provenance of the covered animal part or product and showing the covered animal part or product to be not less than 100 years old; and
(B) the total weight of the covered animal part or product is less than 200 grams;
(4) when the covered animal part or product is a fixed component of a firearm; knife; or musical instrument, including string instruments and bows, wind and percussion instruments, and pianos, provided that the covered animal part or product was legally acquired and provided that the total weight of the covered animal part or product is less than 200 grams; or
(5) the activity is authorized under section 5504 of this title.
(b) Documentation evidencing reasonable provenance or the age of a covered animal part or product that may be purchased, sold, offered for sale, or possessed under subsection (a) of this section may include receipts of purchase, invoices, bills of sale, prior appraisals, auction catalogues, museum or art gallery exhibit catalogues, and the signed certification of an antique appraiser to the age of the covered animal part. The issuance of a false or fraudulent certification of the age of a covered animal part or product shall be subject to penalty under section 5506 of this title. (Added 2019, No. 169 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2022.)
