[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2561 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2561
To amend the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 to clarify provisions enacted
by the Captive Wildlife Safety Act, to further the conservation of
certain wildlife species, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 26, 2019
Mr. Blumenthal (for himself, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Van Hollen,
Mr. Whitehouse, Mrs. Feinstein, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mr. Reed, Mr. Markey,
Mr. Booker, and Ms. Harris) introduced the following bill; which was
read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public
Works
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 to clarify provisions enacted
by the Captive Wildlife Safety Act, to further the conservation of
certain wildlife species, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Big Cat Public Safety Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
(a) In General.--Section 2 of the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16
U.S.C. 3371) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (a) through (k) as
subsections (b) through (l), respectively; and
(2) by inserting before subsection (b) (as so redesignated)
the following:
``(a) Breed.--The term `breed' means--
``(1) to negligently or intentionally facilitate
propagation or reproduction; and
``(2) to fail to prevent propagation or reproduction.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Consolidated farm and rural development act.--Section
349(a)(3) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7
U.S.C. 1997(a)(3)) is amended by striking ``section 2(a)'' and
inserting ``section 2(b)''.
(2) Lacey act amendments of 1981.--
(A) Section 3(e)(2)(C) of the Lacey Act Amendments
of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 3372(e)(2)(C)) is amended--
(i) in clause (ii), by striking ``section
2(g)'' and inserting ``section 2(h)''; and
(ii) in clause (iii), by striking ``section
2(g)'' and inserting ``section 2(h)''.
(B) Section 7(c) of the Lacey Act Amendments of
1981 (16 U.S.C. 3376(c)) is amended by striking
``section 2(f)(2)(A)'' and inserting ``section
2(g)(2)(A)''.
SEC. 3. PROHIBITIONS.
Section 3 of the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 3372) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in subparagraph (A), by striking the
semicolon at the end and inserting ``; or'';
(ii) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by striking
``; or'' and inserting a semicolon; and
(iii) by striking subparagraph (C); and
(B) in paragraph (4), by striking ``(1) through
(3)'' and inserting ``(1) through (3) or subsection
(e)''; and
(2) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the following:
``(e) Captive Wildlife Offense.--
``(1) In general.--It is unlawful for any person--
``(A) to import, export, transport, sell, receive,
acquire, or purchase any prohibited wildlife species--
``(i) in interstate or foreign commerce; or
``(ii) in a manner substantially affecting
interstate or foreign commerce; or
``(B) to breed or possess any prohibited wildlife
species.
``(2) Limitation on application.--Paragraph (1) does not
apply to--
``(A) an entity exhibiting animals to the public
under a Class C license from the Department of
Agriculture, or a Federal facility registered with the
Department of Agriculture that exhibits animals, if
that entity or facility--
``(i) holds that license or registration in
good standing;
``(ii) does not allow any individual to
come into direct physical contact with a
prohibited wildlife species, unless--
``(I) that individual is--
``(aa) a trained
professional employee or
contractor of the entity or
facility (or an accompanying
employee receiving professional
training); or
``(bb) a licensed
veterinarian (or a veterinary
student accompanying that
veterinarian); or
``(II)(aa) that individual is
directly supporting conservation
programs of the entity or facility; and
``(bb) the contact is--
``(AA) not in the course of
commercial activity (which may
be evidenced by advertisement
or promotion of that activity
or other relevant evidence);
and
``(BB) incidental to humane
husbandry conducted pursuant to
a species-specific, publicly
available, peer-edited
population management and care
plan that has been provided to
the Secretary with
justifications that the plan
reflects established
conservation science
principles, incorporates
genetic and demographic
analysis of a multi-institution
population of animals covered
by the plan, and promotes
animal welfare by ensuring that
the frequency of breeding is
appropriate for the species;
and
``(iii) ensures that, during public
exhibition of a lion (Panthera leo), tiger
(Panthera tigris), leopard (Panthera pardus),
snow leopard (Uncia uncia), jaguar (Panthera
onca), cougar (Puma concolor), or any hybrid of
any of those animals, the animal is not less
than 15 feet from members of the public unless
there is a permanent barrier sufficient to
prevent public contact;
``(B) a State college, university, or agency;
``(C) a State-licensed veterinarian;
``(D) a wildlife sanctuary that--
``(i) cares for prohibited wildlife
species;
``(ii) is a corporation that is--
``(I) exempt from taxation under
section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986; and
``(II) described in sections
501(c)(3) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) of that
Code;
``(iii) does not commercially trade in any
prohibited wildlife species, including
offspring, parts, and byproducts of prohibited
wildlife species;
``(iv) does not breed any prohibited
wildlife species;
``(v) does not allow direct contact between
the public and any prohibited wildlife species;
and
``(vi) does not allow the transportation
and display of any prohibited wildlife species
off-site;
``(E) an entity that has custody of any prohibited
wildlife species solely for the purpose of
expeditiously transporting the prohibited wildlife
species to a person described in this paragraph with
respect to the prohibited wildlife species; or
``(F) an entity or individual that--
``(i) is in possession of any prohibited
wildlife species that was born before the date
of enactment of the Big Cat Public Safety Act;
``(ii) not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of that Act, registers each
individual animal of each prohibited wildlife
species possessed by the entity or individual
with the United States Fish and Wildlife
Service;
``(iii) does not breed, acquire, or sell
any prohibited wildlife species after the date
of enactment of that Act; and
``(iv) does not allow direct contact
between the public and any prohibited wildlife
species.''.
SEC. 4. PENALTIES.
(a) Civil Penalties.--Section 4(a)(1) of the Lacey Act Amendments
of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 3373(a)(1)) is amended--
(1) by inserting ``(e),'' after ``(d),''; and
(2) by inserting ``, (e),'' after ``subsection (d)''.
(b) Criminal Penalties.--Section 4(d) of the Lacey Act Amendments
of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 3373(d)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``(e),''
after ``(d),''; and
(B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``(e),''
after ``(d),'';
(2) in paragraph (2), in the first sentence, by inserting
``(e),'' after ``(d),''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(4) Captive wildlife.--
``(A) In general.--Any person who knowingly
violates section 3(e) shall be fined not more than
$20,000, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both.
``(B) Separate offenses.--Each violation under
subparagraph (A) shall be--
``(i) a separate offense; and
``(ii) deemed to have been committed in
both the district in which the violation first
occurred and in any district in which the
defendant may have taken or been in possession
of the prohibited wildlife species.''.
SEC. 5. FORFEITURE OF PROHIBITED WILDLIFE SPECIES.
Section 5(a)(1) of the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C.
3374(a)(1)) is amended by inserting ``bred, possessed,'' before
``imported, exported,''.
SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATION.
Section 7(a) of the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C.
3376(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(3) The Secretary, in consultation with other relevant
Federal and State agencies, shall promulgate any regulations
necessary to implement section 3(e).''.
SEC. 7. TECHNICAL CORRECTION.
Section 4(e), and subsections (a) and (b)(2) of section 8, of the
Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 3373(e), 3377) are amended by
striking ``Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976'' each place
it appears and inserting ``Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act''.
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