Sponsors (20)
Introduced May 21, 2025 by Andrew R. Garbarino · Last progress May 21, 2025
The bill centralizes and funds a national network to improve care for seized endangered/CITES animals and streamline enforcement placement decisions, but it shifts administrative and financial burdens onto non‑government facilities, creates risk of delays and legal/chain‑of‑custody problems, and requires new federal spending.
Federal, state, and local wildlife law enforcement agencies gain a single, vetted national contact and placement network (the Wildlife Confiscations Network and Committee) that speeds transfers and reduces administrative burden when arranging care for seized endangered/CITES animals.
Qualified zoos, sanctuaries, aquaria, NGOs, and universities can be formally recognized and credentialed to receive and care for seized animals, improving animal welfare, quarantine compliance, and the likelihood of appropriate long‑term placement.
Ports, customs, and on‑site officers will have reduced responsibility for long‑term animal care, allowing enforcement to focus more on investigating and disrupting wildlife trafficking and related transnational criminal activity.
Nonprofit facilities, zoos, sanctuaries, and universities may bear new administrative, documentation, and compliance costs to qualify for the Network, which could limit participation by smaller organizations and shift expense burdens onto them.
Centralizing placement authority in a Committee and formal review processes could create bottlenecks or slow decisionmaking, delaying placements and reducing responsiveness in urgent cases.
Reliance on external placement and inconsistent procedures across facilities risks gaps in chain‑of‑custody or evidence handling and legal/administrative confusion (including interplay with ESA definitions), which could jeopardize prosecutions or program compliance.
Based on analysis of 5 sections of legislative text.
Creates a voluntary national Network to place and care for seized CITES/ESA-listed animals, sets Committee oversight and membership rules, and authorizes $5M/year for 2026–2030.
Establishes a voluntary national Wildlife Confiscations Network to help federal wildlife law enforcement place and care for seized animals that are listed under CITES or the Endangered Species Act. The Network will be run in partnership with a professional accrediting zoological association, maintain a database of qualified care facilities, operate a review Committee to vet applicants, and develop response protocols. The bill authorizes $5 million per year for fiscal years 2026–2030 to support implementation. The law defines key terms (for example, what counts as a "confiscated animal" and which facilities qualify), sets membership and Committee appointment rules, requires facilities to show required permits and credentials, and aims to expand an existing pilot model so enforcement can focus on wildlife trafficking rather than long-term animal care logistics.