Sponsors (3)
The bill lets accredited institutions keep and transfer certain formerly banned species for conservation and clarifies administrative rules, while imposing per-animal registration and bans on commercial propagation that raise costs for holders and may weaken protections for two leopard species.
Zoos, sanctuaries, and similar institutions (e.g., nonprofit and state-run facilities) can legally possess and transfer certain previously prohibited species if they register, allowing conservation, research, and educational activities to continue.
Registered entities must stop breeding and commercial trade of registered animals, which reduces commercial propagation and may lower risks of illegal trafficking and diversion.
Provides an administrative path to correct or cancel registrations and clarifies statutory scope by excluding snow leopard and clouded leopard (and hybrids) from the prohibited list, reducing legal uncertainty and regulatory burden for compliant holders and agencies.
Private owners and institutions face new per-animal paperwork and compliance costs to register each prohibited species with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, increasing administrative burden and expenses.
Registrants lose the ability to breed, sell, or publicly exhibit registered prohibited species, which could materially reduce revenue for facilities that relied on those activities.
Limiting import/export exceptions to compliant entities may create trade and transfer delays and additional administrative burdens when coordinating with foreign partners or moving animals across borders.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Adds a conditional registration exception (with limits) for certain prohibited wildlife, permits regulated import/export with foreign institutions, and excludes snow and clouded leopards from the prohibited list.
Introduced January 20, 2026 by Paul Gosar · Last progress January 20, 2026
Amends federal wildlife statutes to create a registration pathway and new exceptions for people and institutions that possess animals listed as "prohibited wildlife species," adds an ability for certain compliant entities to import from or export to foreign institutions, and sets an administrative process to cancel registrations if the holder qualified for an exception at the time of registration. It also narrows the statutory definition of "prohibited wildlife species" by expressly excluding snow leopard and clouded leopard (and their hybrids). The bill places conditions on registered animals (no breeding, buying, selling, public direct contact, or exhibiting) and assigns implementation and review responsibilities to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.