Constitutional Amendment IV

Transparency of Power and Right to Explanation

Section 1 — Right to Understand Governance

All persons subject to governance possess the right to a meaningful explanation of decisions that materially affect their rights, status, access, obligations, or standing in fact or in effect.

Legitimacy requires that power be intelligible to those it governs.

Section 2 — Duty of Explainability

Any public decision, action, or system producing material effect shall be explainable in terms comprehensible to a reasonable person without specialized training.
Complexity, automation, delegation, or technical specialization shall not excuse opacity.

Section 3 — Limits on Secrecy

Secrecy may be permitted only where demonstrably and strictly necessary to protect legitimate interests, and only to the narrowest extent required.
The existence, scope, and duration of secrecy shall itself be subject to explanation and review.

Section 4 — Automated and Delegated Systems

Where decisions are informed or influenced by automated, algorithmic, or delegated systems, identifiable human authority shall remain fully and non-delegably responsible for outcomes. Affected persons shall have access to explanation, challenge, and review sufficient to contest error, bias, or abuse.

Section 5 — Enforcement and Standing

Any person shall have standing to challenge violations of this Amendment.
Lack of explanation, refusal to explain, material delay in explanation, or materially misleading explanation shall constitute a justiciable harm.

Section 6 — Construction

This Amendment shall be construed to prevent rule by obscurity, bureaucratic insulation, procedural opacity, and unaccountable technocratic power.
Ambiguity shall be resolved in favor of transparency, accountability, and informed consent of the governed.