[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 361 Reported in Senate (RS)]






                                                       Calendar No. 519
105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                 S. 361

                          [Report No. 105-282]

   To amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to prohibit the sale, 
    import, and export of products labeled as containing endangered 
                    species, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 26, 1997

  Mr. Jeffords (for himself, Mr. Moynihan, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Levin, Mr. 
   D'Amato, Mr. Torricelli, Mr. Lugar, Mr. Abraham, Mr. Smith of New 
 Hampshire, and Mr. Cleland) introduced the following bill; which was 
  read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public 
                                 Works

                             July 31, 1998

Reported by Mr. Chafee, with an amendment and an amendment to the title
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to prohibit the sale, 
    import, and export of products labeled as containing endangered 
                    species, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Rhino and Tiger Product 
Labeling Act''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON SALE, IMPORT, AND EXPORT OF PRODUCTS 
              LABELED AS CONTAINING ENDANGERED SPECIES.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) the populations of several magnificent and 
        unique endangered species, such as the Indian rhinoceros, the 
        Javan rhinoceros, the African black rhinoceros, and all of the 
        tiger subspecies, are declining;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) growing demand throughout the world for 
        wildlife and wildlife parts and products has created a market 
        in which commercial exploitation has threatened certain 
        wildlife populations;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) there are insufficient legal mechanisms 
        enabling the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to 
        forcefully interdict products that are labeled as containing 
        endangered species and prosecute the merchandisers for sale or 
        display of the products; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4)(A) although approximately 77,000 import and 
        export shipments occur annually in the United States, the 
        United States Fish and Wildlife Service is able to maintain 
        only 92 wildlife inspectors at 30 ports of entry, including 13 
        designated ports, to monitor the shipments; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (B) wildlife inspectors are able to physically 
        inspect an estimated 5 to 10 percent of all shipments, making 
        the detection rate of contraband wildlife products extremely 
        low.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Prohibition.--Section 9(a) of the Endangered Species 
Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1538(a)) is amended--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) in paragraph (1)--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) in subparagraph (A)--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (i) by striking ``(A)'' and 
                        inserting ``(A)(i)'';</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (ii) by adding ``or'' at the end; 
                        and</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (iii) by adding at the end the 
                        following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(ii) import any product labeled as containing 
        any such species or any species of fish or wildlife listed in 
        Appendix I to the Convention into, or export any such product 
        from, the United States;''; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) in subparagraph (F), by inserting 
                before the semicolon the following: ``or any product 
                labeled as containing any such species''; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) in paragraph (2)--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) in subparagraph (A)--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (i) by striking ``(A)'' and 
                        inserting ``(A)(i)'';</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (ii) by adding ``or'' at the end; 
                        and</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (iii) by adding at the end the 
                        following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(ii) import any product labeled as containing 
        any such species or any species of plant listed in Appendix I 
        to the Convention into, or export any such product from, the 
        United States;''; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) in subparagraph (D), by inserting 
                before the semicolon the following: ``or any product 
                labeled as containing any such species''.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation 
Act of 1998''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the populations of all but 1 species of rhinoceros, and 
        the tiger, have significantly declined in recent years and 
        continue to decline;
            (2) these species of rhinoceros and tiger are listed as 
        endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 
        U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and listed on Appendix I of the Convention 
        on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and 
        Flora, signed on March 3, 1973 (27 UST 1087; TIAS 8249) 
(referred to in this Act as ``CITES'');
            (3) the Parties to CITES have adopted several resolutions--
                    (A) relating to the conservation of tigers (Conf. 
                9.13 (Rev.)) and rhinoceroses (Conf. 9.14), urging 
                Parties to CITES to implement legislation to reduce 
                illegal trade in parts and products of the species; and
                    (B) relating to trade in readily recognizable parts 
                and products of the species (Conf. 9.6), and trade in 
                traditional medicines (Conf. 10.19), recommending that 
                Parties ensure that their legislation controls trade in 
                those parts and derivatives, and in medicines 
                purporting to contain them;
            (4) a primary cause of the decline in the populations of 
        tiger and most rhinoceros species is the poaching of the 
        species for use of their parts and products in traditional 
        medicines;
            (5) there are insufficient legal mechanisms enabling the 
        United States Fish and Wildlife Service to interdict products 
        that are labeled as containing substances derived from 
        rhinoceros or tiger species and prosecute the merchandisers for 
        sale or display of those products; and
            (6) legislation is required to ensure that--
                    (A) products containing rhinoceros parts or tiger 
                parts are prohibited from importation into, or 
                exportation from, the United States; and
                    (B) efforts are made to educate persons regarding 
                alternatives for traditional medicine products, the 
                illegality of products containing rhinoceros parts and 
                tiger parts, and the need to conserve rhinoceros and 
                tiger species generally.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES OF THE RHINOCEROS AND TIGER CONSERVATION ACT OF 1994.

    Section 3 of the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994 (16 
U.S.C. 5302) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) To prohibit the sale, importation, and exportation of 
        products intended for human consumption or application 
        containing, or labeled or advertised as containing, any 
        substance derived from any species of rhinoceros or tiger.''.

SEC. 4. DEFINITION OF PERSON.

    Section 4 of the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994 (16 
U.S.C. 5303) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) `person' means--
                    ``(A) an individual, corporation, partnership, 
                trust, association, or other private entity;
                    ``(B) an officer, employee, agent, department, or 
                instrumentality of--
                            ``(i) the Federal Government;
                            ``(ii) any State, municipality, or 
                        political subdivision of a State; or
                            ``(iii) any foreign government;
                    ``(C) a State, municipality, or political 
                subdivision of a State; or
                    ``(D) any other entity subject to the jurisdiction 
                of the United States.''.

SEC. 5. PROHIBITION ON SALE, IMPORTATION, OR EXPORTATION OF PRODUCTS 
              LABELED AS RHINOCEROS OR TIGER PRODUCTS.

    The Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 5301 
et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 7 as section 9; and
            (2) by inserting after section 6 the following:

``SEC. 7. PROHIBITION ON SALE, IMPORTATION, OR EXPORTATION OF PRODUCTS 
              LABELED AS RHINOCEROS OR TIGER PRODUCTS.

    ``(a) Prohibition.--A person shall not sell, import, or export, or 
attempt to sell, import, or export, any product, item, or substance 
intended for human consumption or application containing, or labeled or 
advertised as containing, any substance derived from any species of 
rhinoceros or tiger.
    ``(b) Penalties.--
            ``(1) Criminal penalty.--A person engaged in business as an 
        importer, exporter, or distributor that knowingly violates 
        subsection (a) shall be fined under title 18, United States 
        Code, imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both.
            ``(2) Civil penalties.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A person that knowingly violates 
                subsection (a), and a person engaged in business as an 
                importer, exporter, or distributor that violates 
                subsection (a), may be assessed a civil penalty by the 
                Secretary of not more than $12,000 for each violation.
                    ``(B) Manner of assessment and collection.--A civil 
                penalty under this paragraph shall be assessed, and may 
                be collected, in the manner in which a civil penalty 
                under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 may be 
                assessed and collected under section 11(a) of that Act 
                (16 U.S.C. 1540(a)).
    ``(c) Products, Items, and Substances.--Any product, item, or 
substance sold, imported, or exported, or attempted to be sold, 
imported, or exported, in violation of this section or any regulation 
issued under this section shall be subject to seizure and forfeiture to 
the United States.
    ``(d) Regulations.--After consultation with the Secretary of the 
Treasury, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the United 
States Trade Representative, the Secretary shall issue such regulations 
as are appropriate to carry out this section.
    ``(e) Enforcement.--The Secretary, the Secretary of the Treasury, 
and the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is 
operating shall enforce this section in the manner in which the 
Secretaries carry out enforcement activities under section 11(e) of the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1540(e)).
    ``(f) Use of Penalty Amounts.--Amounts received as penalties, 
fines, or forfeiture of property under this section shall be used in 
accordance with section 6(d) of the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 
U.S.C. 3375(d)).''.

SEC. 6. EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH PROGRAM.

    The Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 5301 
et seq.) (as amended by section 5) is amended by inserting after 
section 7 the following:

``SEC. 8. EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH PROGRAM.

    ``(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this section, the Secretary shall develop and implement an 
educational outreach program in the United States for the conservation 
of rhinoceros and tiger species.
    ``(b) Guidelines.--The Secretary shall publish in the Federal 
Register guidelines for the program.
    ``(c) Contents.--Under the program, the Secretary shall publish and 
disseminate information regarding--
            ``(1) laws protecting rhinoceros and tiger species, in 
        particular laws prohibiting trade in products containing, or 
        labeled as containing, their parts;
            ``(2) use of traditional medicines that contain parts or 
        products of rhinoceros and tiger species, health risks 
        associated with their use, and available alternatives to the 
        medicines; and
            ``(3) the status of rhinoceros and tiger species and the 
        reasons for protecting the species.''.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 9 of the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994 (16 
U.S.C. 5306) (as redesignated by section 5(1)) is amended by striking 
``1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000'' and inserting ``1996 through 
2002''.
            Amend the title so as to read: ``A bill to amend the 
        Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994 to prohibit the 
        sale, importation, and exportation of products intended for 
        human consumption or application containing, or labeled or 
        advertised as containing, any substance derived from any 
        species of rhinoceros or tiger, and to reauthorize the 
        Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994, and for other 
        purposes.''.
                                     





                                                       Calendar No. 519

105th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                 S. 361

                          [Report No. 105-282]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

   To amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to prohibit the sale, 
    import, and export of products labeled as containing endangered 
                    species, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                             July 31, 1998

        Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the title