[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 157 (Wednesday, September 28, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5246-S5247]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 5764. Mr. COONS (for himself and Mr. Portman) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 5499 submitted by Mr.
Reed (for himself and Mr. Inhofe) and intended to be proposed to the
bill H.R. 7900, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2023 for
military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the end of subtitle F of title XII, add the following:
SEC. 1276. ENDING GLOBAL WILDLIFE POACHING AND TRAFFICKING.
(a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the
``Eliminate, Neutralize, and Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking
Reauthorization and Improvements Act of 2022''.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the United States Government should continue to work
with international partners, including nations,
nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector, to
identify long-standing and emerging areas of concern in
wildlife poaching and trafficking related to global supply
and demand; and
(2) the activities and required reporting of the
Presidential Task Force on Wildlife Trafficking, established
by Executive Order 13648 (78 Fed. Reg. 40621), and modified
by sections 201 and 301 of the Eliminate, Neutralize, and
Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 (16 U.S.C. 7621 and
7631) should be reauthorized to minimize the disruption of
the work of such Task Force.
(c) Definitions.--Section 2 of the Eliminate, Neutralize,
and Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 (16 U.S.C. 7601)
is amended--
(1) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``involving local
communities'' after ``approach to conservation'';
(2) by amending paragraph (4) to read as follows:
``(4) Country of concern.--The term `country of concern'
means a foreign country specially designated by the Secretary
of State pursuant to section 201(b) as a major source of
wildlife trafficking products or their derivatives, a major
transit point of wildlife trafficking products or their
derivatives, or a major consumer of wildlife trafficking
products, in which--
``(A) the government has actively engaged in, or knowingly
profited from, the trafficking of protected species; or
``(B) the government facilitates such trafficking through
conduct that may include a
[[Page S5247]]
persistent failure to make serious and sustained efforts to
prevent and prosecute such trafficking.''; and
(3) in paragraph (11), by striking ``section 201'' and
inserting ``section 301''.
(d) Framework for Interagency Response and Reporting.--
(1) Reauthorization of report on major wildlife trafficking
countries.--Section 201 of the Eliminate, Neutralize, and
Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 (16 U.S.C. 7621) is
amended--
(A) in subsection (a), by striking ``annually thereafter''
and inserting ``biennially thereafter by June 1 of each year
in which a report is required''; and
(B) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
``(c) Designation.--A country may be designated as a
country of concern under subsection (b) regardless of such
country's status as a focus country.
``(d) Procedure for Removing Countries From List.--In the
first report required under this section submitted after the
date of the enactment of the Eliminate, Neutralize, and
Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Reauthorization and Improvements
Act of 2022, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the
Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce,
shall publish, in the Federal Register, a procedure for
removing from the list in the biennial report any country of
concern that no longer meets the definition of country of
concern under section 2(4).
``(e) Sunset.--This section shall cease to have force or
effect on September 30, 2028.''.
(2) Presidential task force on wildlife trafficking
responsibilities.--Section 301(a) of the Eliminate,
Neutralize, and Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 (16
U.S.C. 7631(a)) is amended--
(A) in paragraph (4), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (9); and
(C) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:
``(5) pursue programs and develop a strategy--
``(A) to expand the role of technology for anti-poaching
and anti-trafficking efforts, in partnership with the private
sector, foreign governments, academia, and nongovernmental
organizations (including technology companies and the
transportation and logistics sectors); and
``(B) to enable local governments to develop and use such
technologies;
``(6) consider programs and initiatives that address the
expansion of the illegal wildlife trade to digital platforms,
including the use of digital currency and payment platforms
for transactions by collaborating with the private sector,
academia, and nongovernmental organizations, including social
media, e-commerce, and search engine companies, as
appropriate;
``(7)(A) implement interventions to address the drivers of
poaching, trafficking, and demand for illegal wildlife and
wildlife products in focus countries and countries of
concern;
``(B) set benchmarks for measuring the effectiveness of
such interventions; and
``(C) consider alignment and coordination with indicators
developed by the Task Force;
``(8) consider additional opportunities to increase
coordination between law enforcement and financial
institutions to identify trafficking activity; and''.
(3) Presidential task force on wildlife trafficking
strategic review.--Section 301 of the Eliminate, Neutralize,
and Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 (16 U.S.C.
7631), as amended by paragraph (2), is further amended--
(A) in subsection (d)--
(i) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking
``annually'' and inserting ``biennially'';
(ii) in paragraph (4), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(iii) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(6) an analysis of the indicators developed by the Task
Force, and recommended by the Government Accountability
Office, to track and measure inputs, outputs, law enforcement
outcomes, and the market for wildlife products for each focus
country listed in the report, including baseline measures, as
appropriate, for each indicator in each focus country to
determine the effectiveness and appropriateness of such
indicators to assess progress and whether additional or
separate indicators, or adjustments to indicators, may be
necessary for focus countries.''; and
(B) in subsection (e), by striking ``5 years after'' and
all that follows and inserting ``on September 30, 2028''.
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