Bill Text
Introduced in House (05/21/2019)
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2863 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2863
To amend the Animal Welfare Act to restrict the use of exotic and wild
animals in traveling performances.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 21, 2019
Mr. Grijalva (for himself, Mr. Schweikert, Mr. Blumenauer, Mr. Cohen,
Mr. Connolly, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Engel, Ms. Jayapal, Ms. Lee of
California, Mr. Lowenthal, Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, Mr.
McGovern, Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire, Ms. Norton, Miss Rice of New
York, Ms. Schakowsky, and Ms. Speier) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Animal Welfare Act to restrict the use of exotic and wild
animals in traveling performances.
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 ``Traveling Exotic Animal and Public
Safety Protection Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that--
(1) conditions inherent to traveling performances,
including constant travel, temporary and collapsible
facilities, and the prolonged confinement and physical coercion
of animals, subject exotic and wild animals to compromised
welfare and chronic stress, and present public and worker
health and safety risks not adequately addressed by current
regulation;
(2) current regulatory oversight of traveling performances
is complex and costly, and these costs are not typically
recouped via licensing fees, but are left to the American
taxpayer;
(3) the frequent mobility of traveling performances
complicates oversight such that agencies and authorities cannot
properly monitor, evaluate, or follow through regarding the
condition of animals or facilities, or their history of
potential injuries, incidents, illnesses, violations, or other
issues, and so cannot properly protect animals, workers, or the
public;
(4) traveling exotic and wild animal performances use
collapsible, temporary, mobile facilities, which risk escape
and serious harm to animals, workers, and the public;
(5) traveling exotic and wild animal performances present
safety risks by permitting or not preventing public contact and
by displaying animals in inappropriate, uncontrolled areas in
dangerous proximity to humans and other animals;
(6) exotic and wild animals have intrinsic value; their
wild instincts and needs are unpredictable and are not
naturally suited to traveling performances, and they suffer as
a result of being unable to fulfill instinctive natural
behaviors;
(7) exotic and wild animals used in traveling performances
suffer severe and extended confinement, and, deprived of
natural movements and behaviors, are prone to chronic stress,
behavioral, health, and psychological problems;
(8) exotic and wild animals are forced to perform unnatural
tricks requiring extreme physical coercion, including, but not
limited to the use of food and water restrictions, electric
shock devices, bullhooks, metal bars, whips, shovels, and
pitchforks, among other abuses;
(9) it is not necessary to use exotic or wild animals in
traveling performances to experience the circus or similar
events;
(10) using exotic or wild animals as commodities traded for
traveling performances adds nothing to the understanding and
conservation of such animals and the natural environment, and
actually undermines conservation efforts necessary to protect
threatened and endangered species;
(11) it is not possible to provide or ensure public and
worker safety or appropriate physical and mental welfare for
exotic and wild animals under the traveling performance
business model, which inherently and significantly restricts
animals' natural movements and behaviors, and where abuse is
prevalent and oversight problematic;
(12) the use of exotic or wild animals in traveling
performances is or substantially affects interstate or foreign
commerce, or the free flow thereof; it is essential to regulate
such activities to assure animals' humane care and treatment;
and
(13) restricting the use of exotic and wild animals in
traveling performances is the most cost-effective and efficient
way to safeguard animals, workers, and the public.
SEC. 3. USE OF EXOTIC OR WILD ANIMALS IN TRAVELING PERFORMANCES
PROHIBITED.
Section 13 of the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2143) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(i)(1) No person shall cause a performance of, or allow for the
participation of, an exotic animal or wild animal in a traveling animal
act.
``(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to--
``(A) domestic animals or farm animals;
``(B) the use of an exotic or wild animal--
``(i) in an exhibition at a nonmobile, permanent
institution, zoo, or aquarium accredited by the
Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA), the World
Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), or the Global
Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS);
``(ii) as part of an environmental education
program by a facility accredited by the Association of
Zoos & Aquariums, if the animal used for such purposes
is not so used for more than 6 months in any year, and
is not kept in a mobile or traveling housing facility
for more than 12 hours in any day;
``(iii) by a university, college, laboratory, or
other research facility registered with the Secretary
pursuant to section 6 for the purpose of conducting
research;
``(iv) in film, television, or advertising, if such
use does not involve a live animal exhibition conducted
before a public studio audience; or
``(v) in a rodeo;
``(C) the use of indigenous wildlife in an exhibition or
environmental education program by a wildlife rehabilitator
that is--
``(i) permitted by the relevant jurisdiction; and
``(ii) accredited or certified by the National
Wildlife Rehabilitation Association (NWRA) or the
International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC) if
the animal used for such purposes is not kept in a
mobile or traveling housing facility for more than 12
hours in any day;
``(D) a federally permitted falconer; or
``(E) a wildlife sanctuary, as defined herein.
``(3) For the purposes of this subsection, the following
definitions apply:
``(A) Cause a performance.--The term `cause a performance'
means to be responsible for a performance, to financially
benefit as an owner or operator from a performance, or to
sponsor a performance.
``(B) Domestic animal.--The term `domestic animal' means
any animal that is normally maintained as a companion or pet
animal in or near the household of the owner or person who
cares for the animal, such as a domestic dog (including a
service dog), domestic cat, ferret, gerbil, horse, mouse, rat,
guinea pig, rabbit, or hamster, but does not include any exotic
animal or wild animal.
``(C) Environmental education program.--The term
`environmental education program' means a program, which may
include animal exhibition, that is professionally designed to
impart knowledge or information for educational or conservation
purposes about that animal's natural behavior, habitat, life
cycle, or similar pedagogical information, conducted by an
individual qualified to impart such information, which does not
include any performance of behavior that does not naturally
occur for that animal in the wild state.
``(D) Exotic and wild animals.--The terms `exotic animal',
`wild animal', `exotic and wild animal', and `exotic or wild
animal' mean any animal that is not a domestic animal or farm
animal, which is now or has historically been found in the wild
or in the wild state, whether wild-borne or captive-bred, and
any hybrid of such an animal, including hybrid crosses with a
domestic animal or farm animal, including but not limited to
animals such as--
``(i) canidae (excepting domestic dogs);
``(ii) cetartiodactyla (excepting alpacas, bison,
cattle, deer, elk, goats, llamas, reindeer, swine, and
sheep);
``(iii) crocodilia;
``(iv) edentata;
``(v) elasmobranchii;
``(vi) felidae (excepting domestic cats);
``(vii) hyaenidae;
``(viii) marsupialia;
``(ix) mustelidae;
``(x) nonhuman primates;
``(xi) perissodactyla (excepting horses, donkeys,
and mules);
``(xii) pinnipedia;
``(xiii) proboscidea;
``(xiv) procyonidae;
``(xv) ratites;
``(xvi) spheniscidae;
``(xvii) testudinidae;
``(xviii) ursidae;
``(xix) varanidae; and
``(xx) viverridae.
``(E) Farm animal.--The term `farm animal' means alpacas,
cattle, sheep, swine, goats, llamas, poultry, rabbits, horses,
mules, or donkeys. The term does not include exotic animals or
wild animals.
``(F) Mobile or traveling housing facility.--The term
`mobile or traveling housing facility' means a transporting
vehicle such as a truck, car, trailer, airplane, ship, or
railway car, used to transport or house animals while traveling
to, from, or between locations for performance purposes.
``(G) Performance.--The term `performance' means any animal
act, circus, ride, carnival, display, exhibition, fair, parade,
petting zoo, race, performance, or similar undertaking in which
animals are required to perform tricks, give rides, or
participate as accompaniments for the entertainment, amusement,
or benefit of an audience.
``(H) Traveling animal act.--The term `traveling animal
act' means any performance of animals where such animals are
transported to, from, or between locations for the purpose of
such performance, in a mobile or traveling housing facility.
``(I) Wildlife sanctuary.--The term `wildlife sanctuary'
means an organization described in sections 170(b)(1)(A)(vi)
and 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code 1986, which is a
place of refuge that provides care for abused, neglected,
unwanted, impounded, abandoned, orphaned, or displaced wildlife
for their lifetime, and which does not--
``(i) engage in commercial trade in any exotic or
wild animal, including the sale of any animal, animal
part or derivative, offspring, photographic
opportunities, or public events for financial profit or
any other entertainment purpose;
``(ii) breed any exotic or wild animal;
``(iii) permit unescorted public visitation;
``(iv) permit direct contact between the public and
any exotic or wild animal; or
``(v) remove any exotic or wild animal from a
sanctuary or enclosure for exhibition or performance.
``(4) A person who fails to comply with this subsection
shall be subject to the enforcement and penalties provided for
under sections 16, 19, and 29.''.
SEC. 4. RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER LAW.
(a) This Act shall not be interpreted to--
(1) authorize the interstate transport of a threatened or
endangered species, which is prohibited under the Endangered
Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1538); or
(2) waive any requirement to comply with any regulation
issued under the Animal Welfare Act.
(b) The provisions of this Act shall be interpreted to be in
addition to, and not in lieu of, any other laws protecting animal
welfare.
(c) This Act shall not be construed to limit any other Federal,
State, or local law or rule that more strictly protects the welfare of
animals.
SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.
The amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the date that
is 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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