Don’t Feed the Bears Act of 2025

This bill would stop people from intentionally feeding bears on federal public lands, especially to lure them for hunting. It tells federal agencies to enforce existing bans in national parks and wildlife refuges, and to create and enforce similar rules for national forests and Bureau of Land Management lands within one year. Rare exceptions are allowed only for a bear’s welfare, public safety, or approved research .

The bill says feeding bears human‑scented foods makes them lose their natural fear of people, which can lead to property damage and sometimes attacks. Bait piles can be hundreds of pounds of pastries, fruit, grease, and animal parts, and are sometimes left out after hunting season ends. Parks that banned feeding and closed open‑air dumps saw big drops in bear‑human encounters.

Key points

• Who is affected: Hunters and visitors on national parks, wildlife refuges, national forests, and BLM lands; the Interior and Agriculture Departments must act.
• What changes: Enforce current bans in parks and refuges; add new rules to stop feeding bears (including “bear baiting”) on other federal lands.
• When: New rules for forests and BLM lands must be finalized within one year of the law taking effect; limited exceptions apply only in extraordinary cases .