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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1326 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1326

To prohibit the conducting of invasive research on great apes, and for 
                            other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 5, 2009

Mr. Towns (for himself, Mr. Reichert, Mr. Langevin, Mr. Bartlett, Mrs. 
  Bono Mack, Mr. Braley of Iowa, Mr. Butterfield, Mr. Campbell, Mrs. 
Capps, Mr. Doyle, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Farr, Mr. Israel, Mr. LoBiondo, Ms. 
Kaptur, Ms. Kilpatrick of Michigan, Mrs. Maloney, Mr. Massa, Mr. Moore 
 of Kansas, Mr. Moran of Virginia, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Stark, 
 and Ms. Woolsey) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                  the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To prohibit the conducting of invasive research on great apes, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Great Ape Protection Act of 2009''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Great apes are highly intelligent and social animals 
        and research laboratory environments involving invasive 
        research cannot meet their complex social and psychological 
        needs.
            (2) Invasive research performed on great apes, and the 
        breeding of great apes for these purposes, are economic in 
        nature and substantially affect interstate commerce.
            (3) The majority of invasive research and testing conducted 
        on great apes in the United States is for the end purpose of 
        developing drugs, pharmaceuticals, and other products to be 
        sold in the interstate market.
            (4) The total costs associated with great ape research have 
        a direct economic impact on interstate commerce.
            (5) An overwhelming majority of invasive research 
        procedures performed on great apes involves some element of 
        interstate commerce, such that great apes, equipment, and 
        researchers have traveled across State lines.
            (6) The regulation of animals and activities as provided in 
        this Act are necessary to effectively regulate interstate and 
        foreign commerce.
            (7) The National Research Council report entitled 
        ``Chimpanzees in Research--Strategies for their Ethical Care, 
        Management, and Use'' concluded that--
                    (A) there is a ``moral responsibility'' for the 
                long-term care of chimpanzees used for scientific 
                research;
                    (B) there should be a moratorium on further 
                chimpanzee breeding;
                    (C) euthanasia should not be used as a means to 
                control the size of the great ape population; and
                    (D) sanctuaries should be created to house 
                chimpanzees in a manner consistent with high standards 
                of lifetime care, social enrichment, and cognitive 
                development.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are to--
            (1) prohibit invasive research on great apes and the use of 
        Federal funding of such research, both within and outside of 
        the United States;
            (2) prohibit the transport of great apes for purposes of 
        invasive research;
            (3) prohibit the breeding of great apes for purposes of 
        invasive research; and
            (4) require the provision of lifetime care of great apes 
        that are owned by or under the control of the Federal 
        Government in a suitable sanctuary through the permanent 
        retirement of such apes.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act, the following terms apply:
            (1) Great ape.--The term ``great ape'' includes a 
        chimpanzee, bonobo, gorilla, orangutan, or gibbon.
            (2) Invasive research.--
                    (A) The term ``invasive research'' means any 
                research that may cause death, bodily injury, pain, 
                distress, fear, injury, or trauma to a great ape, 
                including--
                            (i) the testing of any drug or intentional 
                        exposure to a substance that may be detrimental 
                        to the health or psychological well-being of a 
                        great ape;
                            (ii) research that involves penetrating or 
                        cutting the body or removing body parts, 
                        restraining, tranquilizing, or anesthetizing a 
                        great ape; or
                            (iii) isolation, social deprivation, or 
                        other experimental physical manipulations that 
                        may be detrimental to the health or 
                        psychological well-being of a great ape.
                    (B) Such term does not include--
                            (i) close observation of natural or 
                        voluntary behavior of a great ape, provided 
                        that the research does not require an 
                        anesthetic or sedation event to collect data or 
                        record observations;
                            (ii) the temporary separation of a great 
                        ape from its social group, leaving and 
                        returning, by its own volition;
                            (iii) post-mortem examination of a great 
                        ape that was not killed for the purpose of 
                        examination or research; and
                            (iv) the administration of an annual or 
                        other necessary physical exam by a licensed 
                        veterinarian for the individual great ape's 
                        well-being, that may include collection of 
                        blood, hair, or tissue samples conducted for 
                        the well-being of that great ape, the ape's 
                        social group, or the species.
            (3) Permanent retirement.--
                    (A) The term ``permanent retirement'' means that a 
                great ape is placed in a suitable sanctuary that will 
                provide for the lifetime care of the great ape and such 
                great ape will not be used in further invasive 
                research.
                    (B) Such term does not include euthanasia.
            (4) Person.--The term ``person'' means--
                    (A) an individual, corporation, partnership, trust, 
                association, or any other private or not-for-profit 
                entity;
                    (B) any officer, employee, agent, department, or 
                instrumentality of the Federal Government, a State, 
                municipality, or political subdivision of a State; or
                    (C) any other entity subject to the jurisdiction of 
                the United States.
            (5) Suitable sanctuary.--The term ``suitable sanctuary'' 
        means--
                    (A) a sanctuary system under section 481C of the 
                Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 287a-3a); or
                    (B) a comparable privately funded sanctuary 
                approved by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITIONS.

    (a) Invasive Research Prohibition.--No person shall conduct 
invasive research on a great ape.
    (b) Prohibition on Related Activities.--No person shall knowingly 
breed, possess, rent, loan, donate, purchase, sell, house, maintain, 
lease, borrow, transport, move, deliver, or receive a great ape for the 
purpose of conducting invasive research on such great ape.
    (c) Prohibition on Federal Funding for Invasive Research.--No 
Federal funds may be used to conduct invasive research on a great ape 
both within and outside the United States.
    (d) Exemption.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit or 
prevent individualized medical care performed on a great ape by a 
licensed veterinarian for the well-being of the great ape, including 
surgical procedures or chemical treatments for birth control.

SEC. 5. RETIREMENT.

    The Secretary of Health and Human Services or any other appropriate 
Federal authority shall provide for the permanent retirement of all 
great apes owned or under the control of the Federal Government that 
are being maintained in any facility for the purpose of breeding for, 
holding for, or conducting invasive research.

SEC. 6. CIVIL PENALTIES.

    In addition to any other penalties that may apply under law, 
whoever violates any provision of this Act shall be assessed a civil 
penalty of not more than $10,000 for each such violation. Each day that 
such violation continues shall constitute a separate offense.

SEC. 7. SEVERABILITY.

    In the event that any one of the provisions in this Act shall, for 
any reason, be held to be invalid or unenforceable in any respect, such 
invalidity or unenforceability shall not affect any other provisions of 
this Act, and this Act shall be construed as if such invalid or 
unenforceable provisions had never been included in this Act.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATES.

    (a) Prohibition of Research and Funding.--The prohibitions under 
subsections (a) and (c) of section (4) shall take effect not later than 
3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Other Requirements.--All other requirements and prohibitions in 
this Act shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.
                                 <all>
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