Federal anti hunting leegislation introduced

[Tim4Trout]

S 2731 IS

108th CONGRESS

2d Session

S. 2731
To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit certain interstate conduct relating to exotic animals.


IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

July 22, 2004

Mr. LAUTENBERG (for himself, Mr. BIDEN, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. CORZINE, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. FEINGOLD, Mr. KOHL, Mr. DURBIN, and Mr. SCHUMER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

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A BILL

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit certain interstate conduct relating to exotic animals.


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 `Captive Exotic Animal Protection Act of 2004'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:

(1) The ethic of hunting involves the consideration of fair chase, which allows the animal the opportunity to avoid the hunter.

(2) At more than 1,000 commercial canned hunt operations across the country, trophy hunters pay a fee to shoot captive exotic animals, from African lions to giraffes and blackbuck antelope, in fenced-in enclosures.

(3) Clustered in a captive setting at unusually high densities, confined exotic animals attract disease more readily than more widely dispersed native species who roam freely.

(4) The transportation of captive exotic animals to commercial canned hunt operations can facilitate the spread of disease across great distances.

(5) The regulation of the transport and treatment of exotic animals on shooting preserves falls outside the traditional domains of State agriculture departments and State fish and game agencies.

(6) This Act is limited in its purpose and will not limit the licensed hunting of any native mammals or any native or exotic birds.

(7) This Act does not aim to criticize those hunters who pursue animals that are not enclosed within a fence.

( This Act does not attempt to prohibit slaughterhouse activities, nor does it aim to prohibit the routine euthanasia of domesticated farm animals.

SEC. 3. TRANSPORT OR POSSESSION OF EXOTIC ANIMALS FOR PURPOSES OF KILLING OR INJURING THEM.

(a) IN GENERAL- Chapter 3 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

`Sec. 49. Exotic animals

`(a) PROHIBITION- Whoever, in or substantially affecting interstate or foreign commerce, knowingly transfers, transports, or possesses a confined exotic animal, for the purposes of allowing the killing or injuring of that animal for entertainment or for the collection of a trophy, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both.

`(b) DEFINITIONS- In this section--

`(1) the term `confined exotic animal' means a mammal of a species not historically indigenous to the United States, that has been held in captivity, whether or not the defendant knows the length of the captivity, for the shorter of--

`(A) the majority of the animal's life; or

`(B) a period of 1 year; and

`(2) the term `captivity' does not include any period during which an animal lives as it would in the wild--

`(A) surviving primarily by foraging for naturally occurring food;

`(B) roaming at will over an open area of not less than 1,000 acres; and

`(C) having the opportunity to avoid hunters.

`(c) ENFORCEMENT-

`(1) IN GENERAL- Any person authorized by the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, may--

`(A) without a warrant, arrest any person that violates this section (including regulations promulgated under this section) in the presence or view of the arresting person;

`(B) execute any warrant or other process issued by an officer or court of competent jurisdiction to enforce this section; and

`(C) with a search warrant, search for and seize any animal taken or possessed in violation of this section.

`(2) FORFEITURE- Any animal seized with or without a search warrant shall be held by the Secretary or by a United States marshal, and upon conviction, shall be forfeited to the United States and disposed of by the Secretary of the Interior in accordance with law.

`(3) ASSISTANCE- The Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service may use by agreement, with or without reimbursement, the personnel and services of any other Federal or State agency for the purpose of enforcing this section.'.

(b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT- The analysis for chapter 3 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

`Sec. 49. Exotic animals'.

END
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http://thomas.loc.gov

Bill Number S2371

Please contact your reps and ask them to vote AGAINST S.2731 as this bill would criminalize currently legal and ethical forms of hunting now in use in several states. Tell them that "canned hunts" as defined by the many state game & fish agencies are already illegal. Remind them that some species have actually been saved from extinction by NOT having this bill/law in place. Remind them that the goal of the supporters of this bill is to end all sport hunting in America. Please do it. Thanks.


All U.S. Senators may be reached through the U.S. Capitol switchboard: 202 224-3121.


http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?OrderBy=state&Sort=ASC

[Robert]

as this bill would criminalize currently legal and ethical forms of hunting now in use in several states

 
...that aint what I just read there....unless I am missing something here...looks like an excellent bill to me.
  I support your right to hunt bear...I hint bear....but WHERE in that bill was ANYTHING that would effect any sort of legal or ethical bear hunting?  Are you hunting bears that are in a cage?  I just do't get it and I read the bill 3 times.

[Tim4Trout]

Robert,

This bill is separate from the Maine referendum ( as referenced in my signature link ) that would have an detrimental effect on Maine's ability to manage its black bear population.

[Mikey]

Tim - no matter what the intent or focus of the bill is, we do not support any legislation introduced by lauten, kennedy, schumer, fienstein, etc.  

The way the legislation reads, it indicates that massive amounts of these exotic game animals are penned at the end of a measured rifle range and helpless to get away from hunters.  I can tell you that is flat wrong and just plain political bs.

I'm scheduled for a cow elk and russian boar hunt this fall at a hunting farm in northern NY.  I have been there and viewed the topography, and there ain't gonna be anything easy about that hunt - geez, I have more open areas where I normally hunt whitetail.  The only reason I'm hunting there is because of the game they offer, not having had the chance to elk or boar hunt in over 25 years.  Let's look at it this way - you gotta be a better than just decent hunter to go lay down some decent dollars to go hunt there, and expect results.  Nobody parades any of these animals past you - you have to hunt them - the only thing this place offers is the hunting of animals you would have to travel thousands of miles to normally hunt and incur expenditures of many thousands of dollars just for the chance, without necessarily getting lucky enough to actually hunt.  

We're not talking about a bunch of six-pack carrying drunks sitting in a heated, furnished tree stand while junior drives a record 8x8 just underneath the stand, you have to be good enough to go get them.

Don't you ever trust any politician to enact a reasonable law - this legislation would put thousands of people out of business and prevent thousands more from enjoying successful hunts and often, the most incredible hunt of a lifetime.  

Look at it this way - if they ban hunting of exotic (anything from out of state) animals, they can eliminate certain hunting activities based on precedent  - once they do that they can ban the use of specific weapons/calibers that woudl be used to hunt those animals as they would no longer be necessary to use them - then they could start banning other firearms/weapons based on possible use - they have tried that with the assault weapons ban (consider semi-auto shotguns, semi-auto hunting rifles and 50 calibers, too).

There isn't anything in the public interest here, except for peta pleasure, that would advocate for the support of that bill and certainly nothing sponsored by that group that would have any reasonable application ot the hunting or shooting sports.

Just my 2 cents worth here.  Mikey.

[huntsman]

Just another pathetic example of what the "honorable" representatives of some states are doing with their valuable time on Capitol Hill. Since when are the fish and game folks so incompetent that they can't regulate the ethical hunting of game animals? It's about the only thing they do well with any regularity. This is pure horse manure, and an incredible waste of representation in the federal government. Stunts like this are part of the reason why our government can't find the resources to deal with the real issues our nation needs to address (many of them the same issues these Demo-liberals love to soapbox so eloquently).  Excuse me while I strap on my hipwaders, it's getting deep!

[dukkillr]

I'm of two minds here.  In my mind "hunting" is essentially defined by the subpoints of this act:

`(2) the term `captivity' does not include any period during which an animal lives as it would in the wild--

`(A) surviving primarily by foraging for naturally occurring food;

`(B) roaming at will over an open area of not less than 1,000 acres; and

`(C) having the opportunity to avoid hunters.

and quite honestly, it's (C) that i think hits the issue.  I don't believe you are "hunting" if what you are shooting doesn't "have the opportunity to avoid hunters".  Essentially you're just shooting, or killing, but not hunting.  Quite honestly I wish these places didn't exist.  I think they give all hunters a bad reputation in a time when the antis are looking for anything they can find to destroy our image.

And now all the game ranch hunters are saying, "Well what do you know? I've hunted exotics and it's challenging."  Hey, if it meets (A), (B), and especially (C), i say good.  Shooting a free-range blackbuck is just as hard as shooting a free range whitetail.  

Now comes the other side, who am I to judge?  Just because I think hunting a hand-fed buffalo in a 200 acre field isn't hunting, why should i apply that standard to others?  I guess I can't.  If that's what someone else thinks hunting is, fine.  I wish they wouldn't do it.  I think it hurts all legit free-range hunters, but I would never vote or support a politician who wanted to take that right away.  I just wish they wouldn't do it.

[Dave in WV]

My take on this is the usual legislative jerks are coming at us in a different way. They'll say some "hunters" are shooting captive animals and it's unsporting. Who will say it's ok? Never mind the reality that the fenced in areas are in hundreds of acres. They wouldn't want people to get confused. It's kind of like the domestic violence clause to get firearms out of a person's hands that has not committed a felony. Hardly anyone would commit re-election suicide and vote against it. The next step is we'll see this on 60 minutes or some other "enlightening" show.

[oso45-70]

Folks,
I don't have to tell you guys that any bill brought up by that group is not any thing but harassment against hunters. That bunch will stop at nothing to make our lives miserable. That would pertane to the Ibex and orix and a bunch more animals that have been imported to these farms for hunting.
It's just a shame they can't find some cause that would be worth while and leave the sportsman alone, JMHO.............Joe..........

[jhm]

I wonder if old Ted K. would support a bill banning ( Oldmobiles, crossing bridges at night, and booze ) ?? :?      JIM

[Black Jaque Janaviac]

It doesn't suprise me that those particular politicians can't distinguish between ethics and sportsmanship.

Ethics has to do with a moral code - it involves God, and going to Heaven or Hell.  

Shooting a penned animal is not a matter of ethics otherwise there would be thousands of slaughterhouse workers going to Hell.

Shooting a penned animal IS, however, a matter of sportsmanship.  I don't think we need to legislate sportsmanship do we?

Before I ruffle any feathers, I would say that I can recognize some level of contest in game farm hunting.  On the other hand, l believe the level of contest is diluted.  What would you do if you found out that inside the 1,000 acre pen there were absolutely none of whatever you paid to hunt?  You'd ask for your money back right?  Well, that's exactly what your money buys - a guarantee that the animals will be there.  That guarantee does not exist in nature.  The only way to assure that the animals will be where you are is knowlege, not a check.  So no matter what, game farm hunting is going to be inherently different, it may be extremely challenging, but it will not be the same as hunting in the wild.