I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2327 

To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to strengthen polar 

bear conservation efforts, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 15, 2007 

Mr. INSLEE (for himself, Mr. LOBIONDO, and Mr. DICKS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, 

and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to 

be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to 

strengthen polar bear conservation efforts, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Polar Bear Protection 

5 Act of 2007’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS

2 

•HR 2327 IH

1 (1) Section 101 of the Marine Mammal Protec2 tion Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1371) established a 

3 moratorium on the importation of marine mammals 

4 and marine mammal products, including the impor5 tation of all sport hunted marine mammal trophies. 

6 (2) In 1994, such section was amended to cre7 ate an exemption from the moratorium, which allows 

8 the importation of sport-hunted polar bear trophies 

9 from Canada. 

10 (3) This exemption has had the effect of in11 creasing Canadian polar bear mortalities from 

12 United States sport hunters. 

13 (4) Polar bears have low reproductive rates, 

14 have long lives, and rely on high adult survival rates 

15 to maintain population numbers. In addition, polar 

16 bear populations are under stress from climate 

17 change and habitat degradation. 

18 (5) In July 2005, the World Conservation 

19 Union Polar Bear Specialist Group released its 

20 quadrennial report, in which it reviewed the status 

21 of polar bears and concluded that the species should 

22 be upgraded from ‘‘a species of least concern’’ to 

23 ‘‘vulnerable’’, based on the ‘‘likelihood of an overall 

24 decline in the size of the total population of more 

25 than 30 percent within the next 35 to 50 years’’. 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS

3 

•HR 2327 IH

1 (6) Based on threats posed to polar bears, on 

2 December 27, 2006, the Department of the Interior 

3 proposed that polar bears be listed under the En4 dangered Species Act of 1973 as threatened species. 

5 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are the fol6 lowing: 

7 (1) To ensure that citizens of the United States 

8 do not contribute to polar bear mortalities in Can9 ada by removing the exemption in that Act that al10 lows for the Secretary of the Interior to issue per11 mits to United States trophy hunters for the impor12 tation of polar bear trophies from Canada. 

13 (2) To heed the warnings of the Department of 

14 the Interior and the World Conservation Union 

15 Polar Bear Specialist Group that polar bears are at 

16 risk and could become endangered, by prohibiting 

17 such importation. 

18 (3) To further the goals of the International 

19 Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears, to 

20 which all five nations with polar bears within their 

21 borders are a party. 

22 SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO PROHIBIT IMPORTATION OF 

23 POLAR BEARS AND POLAR BEAR PARTS. 

24 The Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 is 

25 amended— 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS

4 

•HR 2327 IH

1 (1) in section 101(a)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1371(a)(1)) 

2 by— 

3 (A) striking ‘‘, or for importation of polar 

4 bear parts (other than internal organs) taken in 

5 sport hunts in Canada.’’ and inserting ‘‘. No 

6 permit may be issued under this Act for the im7 portation of polar bear parts taken in a sport 

8 hunt.’’; 

9 (B) striking ‘‘, except permits issued under 

10 section 104(c)(5),’’; and 

11 (C) striking ‘‘, other than importation 

12 under section 104(c)(5),’’; 

13 (2) in section 104(c) (16 U.S.C. 1374(c))— 

14 (A) in paragraph (2)(E), by striking 

15 ‘‘paragraph (10)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

16 (9)’’; 

17 (B) in paragraph (8)(B)(ii), by striking 

18 ‘‘paragraph (10)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

19 (9)’’; 

20 (C) by striking paragraph (5); and 

21 (D) by redesignating (6) through (10) as 

22 paragraphs (5) through (9); and 

23 (3) in section 104(e)(1) (16 U.S.C. 

24 1374(e)(1))— 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS

5 

•HR 2327 IH

1 (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or’’ 

2 after the comma at the end; 

3 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘, 

4 or’’ and inserting a period; and 

5 (C) by striking subparagraph (C). 

Æ 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS