"Animal Trophies" From Threatened Species: Should They be Illegal? (H.R. 5690)

What is H.R. 5690?

(Updated March 9, 2022)

This bill — the ProTECT Act of 2018 — would prohibit the taking (i.e. killing) of any endangered or threatened animal species in the U.S. as a trophy and the importation of any such trophy into the U.S. It would also prohibit the Secretary of the Interior from issuing permits allowing the importation of such trophies. In effect, it would reverse the Trump administration’s decision to consider applications for the importation of such trophies on a case-by-case basis.

The bill’s full title is the Prohibiting Threatened and Endangered Creature Trophies Act of 2018.

Argument in favor

Allowing animal trophies from endangered or threatened species to be imported into the U.S. legally creates demand for the senseless killing of such animals so they should be banned.

Argument opposed

Regulated hunting of endangered or threatened animals should be part of a scientific wildlife management program can help ensure the long-term survival of those species.

Impact

Threatened or endangered animals; those who ranch or poach such animals; and the Dept. of the Interior.

Cost of H.R. 5690

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) introduced this bill to prohibit the importation of trophies from endangered or threatened animals into the U.S.:

“The ProTECT Act of 2018 ensures that all acts of senseless and perilous trophy killings are prohibited under the Endangered Species Act. I was in Africa when the iconic Cecil the Lion, was murdered for sport. It is a disgrace that this act was committed by an American -- with his lack of respect for these wondrous animals and the preservation of our wildlife reverberating across the world. With growing support and awareness of the need to protect ecosystem and a greater need for compassion of animal welfare issues, we hope that this legislative effort will be signed into law by the President, rescinding his pro-trophy hunting directive from March of this year.”

The National Rifle Association supported the Trump administration’s decision to allow limited imports of lion trophies from Zimbabwe and Zambia, with a spokesman saying:

“By lifting the import ban on lion trophies from Zimbabwe and Zambia, the Trump Administration underscored the importance of sound scientific wildlife management and regulated hunting to the survival and enhancement of game species in this country and worldwide. This is a significant step forward in having hunting receive the recognition it deserves as a tool of wildlife management, which had been all but buried in the previous administration.”

This legislation has the support of three cosponsors, all of whom are Democrats.

Media:

• Cosponsoring Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) Press Release
  
• Countable (Context)
  
• Born Free USA (In Favor)
  
• National Rifle Association (Context - Opposed)
  
• Safari Club International (Context - Opposed)