US Congress House Bill 996 (Prior Session Legislation)

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Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 33-0)
Status: Introduced on March 6 2013 - 25% progression, died in committee
Action: 2013-04-08 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, And Investigations.
Pending: House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, And Investigations Committee
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]

Invasive Fish and Wildlife Prevention Act - Authorizes any person, entity, or the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to propose the regulation of nonnative wildlife taxa. Requires the Director to determine whether the proposal should be approved within 180 days. Requires the Director to promulgate regulations to: (1) specify the criteria for regulating a nonnative taxon as an Injurious I taxon or Injurious II taxon that is injurious to humans, agriculture, horticulture, forestry, wildlife, or wildlife resources; (2) establish a process for assessing and analyzing the risks of taxa that may have been imported into or found in interstate commerce; and (3) designate a wildlife taxon that was previously designated as injurious by statute or the Secretary of the Interior as an Injurious I or Injurious II taxon. Requires the Secretary, not later than three years after enactment of this Act, to: (1) define the phrase "non-native wildlife taxa novel to the United States"; (2) establish a process to ensure that all such taxa are thereafter reviewed by the Director to determine whether they should be regulated as Injurious I or Injurious II taxa prior to allowing their importation; and (3) seek to avoid, in promulgating such regulation, creating a new incentive for animal importers to import novel taxa prior to the effective date of such regulation. Requires the Director, prior to designating a taxon as an Injurious I or Injurious II taxon, to prepare a risk determination. Authorizes the Director to immediately and temporarily designate a nonnative wildlife taxon as Injurious I if an emergency exists because such unregulated taxon poses an imminent threat of harm to individuals in, or wildlife of, the United States or to the U.S. economy or environment. Requires the Director to: (1) establish an electronic, publicly available database that describes all quantities of imports of all live wildlife and the regulatory status of such wildlife; (2) monitor and report on the identities and quantities of nonnative wildlife taxa being imported; and (3) make more rapid determinations on proposals for regulation of importations or shipments of injurious mammals, birds, fish, amphibia, and reptiles under the Lacey Act by requiring the Secretary to forego time-consuming optional administrative steps that are not essential and by authorizing the Secretary to forego economic impact analyses. Gives the Secretary the primary authority to prevent the importation of, and interstate commerce in, wildlife pathogens and harmful parasites. Requires the Secretary to promulgate regulations to impose import restrictions to prevent the importation of, and commerce in, such pathogens and parasites. Establishes exemptions to such requirement. Prohibits any person from: (1) importing or knowingly possessing such an Injurious I or Injurious II taxon, or the descendant of such an animal, that was imported in violation of this Act; (2) engaging in interstate commerce for or knowingly possessing such an animal that was transported in interstate commerce in violation of this Act; and (3) releasing any such taxon into the wild. Sets forth exemptions from such prohibitions. Authorizes the Director to issue permits to qualified institutions to authorize actions otherwise prohibited for such taxon. Establishes civil and criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Requires the Secretary to adopt a fee to be charged on imported live wildlife shipments, excluding shipments made by qualified institutions for scientific, veterinary, or medical research, education, conservation outreach, or display purposes. Establishes the Injurious Wildlife Prevention Fund to carry out this Act.

Invasive Fish and Wildlife Prevention Act

Rep. Louise Slaughter [D-NY]	Rep. Earl Blumenauer [D-OR]	Rep. Madeleine Bordallo [D-GU]	Rep. Lois Capps [D-CA]
Rep. Matthew Cartwright [D-PA]	Rep. John Conyers [D-MI]	Rep. John Dingell [D-MI]	Rep. Keith Ellison [D-MN]
Rep. Sam Farr [D-CA]	Rep. Raul Grijalva [D-AZ]	Rep. Alcee Hastings [D-FL]	Rep. Brian Higgins [D-NY]
Rep. Marcy Kaptur [D-OH]	Rep. Daniel Kildee [D-MI]	Rep. Barbara Lee [D-CA]	Rep. Sander Levin [D-MI]
Rep. David Loebsack [D-IA]	Rep. Daniel Maffei [D-NY]	Rep. Carolyn Maloney [D-NY]	Rep. James Moran [D-VA]
Rep. Patrick Murphy [D-FL]	Rep. Richard Nolan [D-MN]	Rep. William Owens [D-NY]	Sen. Gary Peters [D-MI]
Rep. Chellie Pingree [D-ME]	Rep. Mark Pocan [D-WI]	Rep. Charles Rangel [D-NY]	Rep. Tim Ryan [D-OH]
Rep. Gregorio Sablan [D-MP]	Rep. Bradley Schneider [D-IL]	Rep. Carol Shea-Porter [D-NH]	Rep. Mike Thompson [D-CA]
Rep. Timothy Walz [D-MN]

Date	Chamber	Action
2013-04-08	House	Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, And Investigations.
2013-03-11	House	Referred to the Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs.
2013-03-06	House	Referred to House Budget
2013-03-06	House	Referred to House Ways and Means
2013-03-06	House	Referred to House Judiciary
2013-03-06	House	Referred to House Natural Resources
2013-03-06	House	Referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, Ways and Means, and the Budget, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
2013-03-06	House	Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E248)

SB1153 (Related) 2014-07-16 - Committee on Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife. Hearings held.

Type	Source
Summary	https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/996/all-info
Text	https://www.congress.gov/113/bills/hr996/BILLS-113hr996ih.pdf