IB 

House Calendar No. 104 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 2908 

[Report No. 114–483] 

To adopt the bison as the national mammal of the United States. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 25, 2015 

Mr. CLAY (for himself, Mr. FORTENBERRY, Mr. SERRANO, Mrs. NOEM, Mr. 

CRAMER, Mr. HANNA, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. PERLMUTTER, and 

Mr. CLEAVER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 

APRIL 12, 2016 

Additional sponsors: Mr. KLINE, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Ms. 

SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. KIND, and Mr. WALZ

APRIL 12, 2016 

Reported with an amendment, referred to the House Calendar, and ordered 

to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on June 25, 2015] 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 2908 RH

A BILL 

To adopt the bison as the national mammal of the United 

States. 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 2908 RH

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 ‘‘National Bison Legacy 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) bison are considered a historical symbol of 

9 the United States; 

10 (2) bison were integrally linked with the eco11 nomic and spiritual lives of many Indian tribes 

12 through trade and sacred ceremonies; 

13 (3) there are more than 60 Indian tribes partici14 pating in the Intertribal Buffalo Council; 

15 (4) numerous members of Indian tribes are in16 volved in bison restoration on tribal land; 

17 (5) members of Indian tribes have a combined 

18 herd on more than 1,000,000 acres of tribal land; 

19 (6) the Intertribal Buffalo Council is a tribal or20 ganization incorporated pursuant to section 17 of the 

21 Act of June 18, 1934 (commonly known as the ‘‘In22 dian Reorganization Act’’) (25 U.S.C. 477); 

23 (7) bison can play an important role in improv24 ing the types of grasses found in landscapes to the 

25 benefit of grasslands; 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 2908 RH

1 (8) a small group of ranchers helped save bison 

2 from extinction in the late 1800s by gathering the 

3 remnants of the decimated herds; 

4 (9) bison hold significant economic value for pri5 vate producers and rural communities; 

6 (10) according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture 

7 of the Department of Agriculture, as of 2012, 162,110 

8 head of bison were under the stewardship of private 

9 producers, creating jobs and providing a sustainable 

10 and healthy meat source contributing to the food secu11 rity of the United States; 

12 (11) on December 8, 1905, William Hornaday, 

13 Theodore Roosevelt, and others formed the American 

14 Bison Society in response to the near extinction of 

15 bison in the United States; 

16 (12) on October 11, 1907, the American Bison 

17 Society sent 15 captive-bred bison from the New York 

18 Zoological Park, now known as the ‘‘Bronx Zoo’’, to 

19 the first wildlife refuge in the United States, which 

20 was known as the ‘‘Wichita Mountains Wildlife Ref21 uge’’, resulting in the first successful reintroduction of 

22 a mammal species on the brink of extinction back 

23 into the natural habitat of the species; 

24 (13) in 2005, the American Bison Society was 

25 reestablished, bringing together bison ranchers, manVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:18 Apr 12, 2016 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2908.RH H2908

sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 2908 RH

1 agers from Indian tribes, Federal and State agencies, 

2 conservation organizations, and natural and social 

3 scientists from the United States, Canada, and Mex4 ico to create a vision for the North American bison 

5 in the 21st century; 

6 (14) there are bison herds in National Wildlife 

7 Refuges and National Parks; 

8 (15) there are bison in State-managed herds 

9 across 11 States; 

10 (16) there is a growing effort to celebrate and of11 ficially recognize the historical, cultural, and eco12 nomic significance of the North American bison to the 

13 heritage of the United States; 

14 (17) a bison is portrayed on 2 State flags; 

15 (18) the bison has been adopted by 3 States as 

16 the official mammal or animal of those States; 

17 (19) a bison has been depicted on the official seal 

18 of the Department of the Interior since 1912; 

19 (20) the buffalo nickel played an important role 

20 in modernizing the currency of the United States; 

21 (21) several sports teams have the bison as a 

22 mascot, which highlights the iconic significance of 

23 bison in the United States; 

24 (22) in the 2nd session of the 113th Congress, 22 

25 Senators led a successful effort to enact a resolution 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 2908 RH

1 to designate November 1, 2014, as the third annual 

2 National Bison Day; and 

3 (23) members of Indian tribes, bison producers, 

4 conservationists, sportsmen, educators, and other pub5 lic and private partners have participated in the an6 nual National Bison Day celebration at several events 

7 across the United States and are committed to con8 tinuing this tradition annually on the first Saturday 

9 of November. 

10 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT AND ADOPTION OF THE NORTH 

11 AMERICAN BISON AS THE NATIONAL MAM12 MAL. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The mammal commonly known as 

14 the ‘‘North American bison’’ is adopted as the national 

15 mammal of the United States. 

16 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act or 

17 the adoption of the North American bison as the national 

18 mammal of the United States shall be construed or used 

19 as a reason to alter, change, modify, or otherwise affect any 

20 plan, policy, management decision, regulation, or other ac21 tion by the Federal Government. 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS

sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
House Calendar No. 104 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 2908 

[Report No. 114–483] 

A BILL 

To adopt the bison as the national mammal of the 

A

United States. 

PRIL 12, 2016 

Reported with an amendment, referred to the House 

Calendar, and ordered to be printed 


sradovich on DSK3TPTVN1PROD with BILLS