[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 16 (Monday, February 10, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1199-S1200]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          BEAR PROTECTION ACT

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on February 5, I introduced the Bear 
Protection Act, S. 263. This measure is aimed at controlling poaching 
of bears such as the American black bear which is found in Kentucky. It 
addresses several enforcement and jurisdictional loopholes that are 
caused by a patchwork of State laws. The current inconsistencies enable 
a wildly profitable underground black market for bear parts to flourish 
in the United States.
  Mr. President, my bill would in no way affect legal hunting of bears. 
Hunters would still be allowed to keep trophies and furs of bears 
killed during legal hunts. This measure would only prohibit the sale or 
barter of the internal organs of the bear which are referred to as bear 
viscera.
  This bill is made necessary because of the booming illegal trade in 
bear viscera. At least 18 Asian countries are known to participate in 
the illegal trade in bear parts. Bear viscera are also illegally sold 
and traded in large urban areas in the United States such as San 
Francisco, Seattle, Portland, and New York City. These cities serve as 
primary ports for export shipments of these goods.
  Bear parts, such as gall bladders, are used in traditional Asian 
medicine to treat everything from diabetes to heart disease. Due to the 
increasing demand for bear viscera, the population of Asian black bears 
has been totally annihilated over the last few years. This has led 
poachers to turn to American bears to fill the increasing demand. I, 
for one, will not stand by and allow our own bear populations to be 
decimated by poachers.
  Mr. President, it is estimated that Kentucky has only 50 to 100 black 
bears remaining in the wild. Black bears once roamed free across the 
Appalachian Mountains, through the rolling hills of the bluegrass, all 
the way to the Mississippi River. Although we cannot restore the 
numbers we once had, we can ensure that the remaining bears are not 
sold for profit to the highest bidder.
  Poaching has become an astoundingly profitable enterprise. It is 
estimated that over 40,000 bears are poached in the United States every 
year. That equals the number that are taken by legal hunting.
  Mr. President, the main reason behind these astounding numbers is 
greed. In South Korea, bear gall bladders are worth their weight in 
gold, and an average bear gall bladder can bring as high as $10,000 on 
the black market.
  Currently, U.S. law enforcement officials have little power to 
address the poaching of bears and the sale of their parts in an 
effective manner. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has 
neither the manpower nor the budget to test all bear parts sold legally 
in the United States. Without extensive testing, law enforcement 
officials cannot determine if gall bladders or other parts have come 
from threatened or endangered species. This problem perpetuates the 
poaching of endangered or threatened bears.
  The Lacey Act currently regulates the interstate commerce of wildlife 
possessed or transported in violation of State law. Inconsistencies in 
State law, however, make convictions under this statute difficult. 
Under the current legal situation, it is impossible to determine 
whether a gall bladder being sold in Idaho comes from a legally taken 
local bear or an endangered Louisiana black bear without expensive 
testing. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Special Agent Corky Roberts illustrates 
this point in a recent Humane Society publication,

       If somebody kills a bear in the state of Washington all 
     they have to do is get it to Idaho. Technically * * *, it's 
     against the law but all it does is make it more difficult to 
     prove that the bear was taken in Washington and traded 
     illegally in interstate commerce. That's where the Lacey Act 
     has problems.

  The Bear Protection Act will establish national guidelines for trade 
in bear parts, but it will not weaken any existing State laws that have 
been instituted to deal with this issue. My bill will also instruct the 
Secretary of the Interior and the U.S. Trade Representative to 
establish a dialog with the appropriate countries to coordinate efforts 
aimed at curtailing the international bear trade.
  Mr. President, this measure is crafted narrowly enough to deal with 
the poaching of the American black bear for profit, while still 
ensuring the rights of American sportsmen. I urge my colleagues to join 
me in support of this much-needed legislation. Mr. President, I ask 
that the full text of the bill be printed in the Congressional Record.
  The text of the bill follows:

                                 S. 263

       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 ``Bear Protection Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) there are 8 extant species of bear: Asian black bear, 
     brown bear, polar bear, American black bear, spectacled bear, 
     giant panda, sun bear, and sloth bear;
       (2) the Asian black bear populations have been decimated in 
     recent years by illegal trade to supply the growing demand 
     for medicines and cosmetics containing valuable bear viscera;
       (3) without immediate action to end United States 
     involvement in the lucrative black market trade in bear 
     viscera, American bear populations may suffer the same 
     devastating losses as Asian bear populations;
       (4) increasingly, undercover operations have discovered 
     that poachers are establishing extensive smuggling networks 
     to illegally commercialize American bears;
       (5) because it is practically impossible to distinguish the 
     viscera of CITES Appendix I bears from the viscera of other 
     bear species, there is an urgent need to eliminate the trade 
     in the viscera of all bear species;
       (6) as a party to CITES, a world leader in wildlife 
     conservation, and a larger market for and supplier of bear 
     viscera and products, the United States shares responsibility 
     for supporting and implementing measures to stop the illegal 
     trade in CITES Appendix I Asian black bears and CITES 
     Appendix II American black bears;
       (7) inconsistency in State prohibition of commercialization 
     of bear gall and inadequate Federal regulation of such 
     commercialization make law enforcement difficult; and
       (8) individual States, which have the right to set, 
     maintain, and enforce quotas for the legal hunting of black 
     bears, will be assisted in their management efforts by the 
     enactment of a Federal law banning the import of, export of, 
     and interstate commerce in bear viscera.

     SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

       The purpose of this Act is to ensure the long-term 
     viability of the world's 8 bear species and specifically to 
     perpetuate healthy populations of American bears.

[[Page S1200]]

     SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the policy of the United States that effective long-
     term conservation of the world's bear species, including 
     North American bears, depends in part on the prohibition of 
     the lucrative trade in bear viscera.

     SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Bear Viscera.--The term ``bear viscera'' means the body 
     fluids or internal organs (including the gallbladder) of a 
     species of bear.
       (2) Cites.--The term ``CITES'' means the Convention on 
     International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and 
     Flora, done at Washington on March 3, 1973 (27 UST 1087; TIAS 
     8249).
       (3) Other terms.--The terms ``import'', ``person'', 
     ``State'', and ``transport'' have the meanings provided in 
     section 2 of the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 
     3371).

     SEC. 6. PROHIBITED ACTS.

       A person who--
       (1) imports into the United States, or exports from the 
     United States, bear viscera or products that contain or claim 
     to contain bear viscera; or
       (2) sells, barters, offers to sell or barter, purchases, 
     possesses with intent to sell or barter, transports, 
     acquires, or receives in interstate or foreign commerce, bear 
     viscera or products that contain or claim to contain bear 
     viscera;

     shall be subject to section 7(a).

     SEC. 7. PENALTIES AND ENFORCEMENT.

       (a) In General.--A person who engages in conduct described 
     in section 6 shall be subject to the penalties and sanctions 
     provided in sections 4 and 5 of the Lacey Act Amendments of 
     1981 (16 U.S.C. 3373 and 3374).
       (b) Enforcement.--
       (1) In general.--This Act shall be enforced in the manner 
     provided in subsections (a), (b), and (c) of section 6 of the 
     Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 3375).
       (2) Use of penalty amounts for rewards and incidental 
     expenses.--Amounts received as penalties, fines, or 
     forfeiture of property under subsection (a) shall be used in 
     accordance with section 6(d) of the Lacey Act Amendments of 
     1981 (16 U.S.C. 3375(d)).

     SEC. 8. DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING TRADE PRACTICES.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior and the 
     United States Trade Representative shall--
       (1) discuss issues involving trade in bear viscera with the 
     appropriate representatives of such countries trading with 
     the United States as are determined jointly by the Secretary 
     of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to be the 
     leading importers, exporters, or consumers of bear viscera; 
     and
       (2) attempt to establish coordinated efforts with the 
     countries to protect bears.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 5 years after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall 
     submit to Congress a report describing the progress of 
     efforts to end illegal trade in bear viscera.

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