IC 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2032 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 7, 2015 

Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 

AN ACT 

To adopt the bison as the national mammal of the United 

States. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Bison Legacy 

3 Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds that— 

6 (1) bison are considered a historical symbol of 

7 the United States; 

8 (2) bison were integrally linked with the eco9 nomic and spiritual lives of many Indian tribes 

10 through trade and sacred ceremonies; 

11 (3) there are more than 60 Indian tribes par12 ticipating in the Intertribal Buffalo Council; 

13 (4) numerous members of Indian tribes are in14 volved in bison restoration on tribal land; 

15 (5) members of Indian tribes have a combined 

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

17 (6) the Intertribal Buffalo Council is a tribal 

18 organization incorporated pursuant to section 17 of 

19 the Act of June 18, 1934 (commonly known as the 

20 ‘‘Indian Reorganization Act’’) (25 U.S.C. 477); 

21 (7) bison can play an important role in improv22 ing the types of grasses found in landscapes to the 

23 benefit of grasslands; 

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

25 from extinction in the late 1800s by gathering the 

26 remnants of the decimated herds; 


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1 (9) bison hold significant economic value for 

2 private producers and rural communities; 

3 (10) according to the 2012 Census of Agri4 culture of the Department of Agriculture, as of 

5 2012, 162,110 head of bison were under the stew6 ardship of private producers, creating jobs and pro7 viding a sustainable and healthy meat source con8 tributing to the food security of the United States; 

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

10 Theodore Roosevelt, and others formed the Amer11 ican Bison Society in response to the near extinction 

12 of bison in the United States; 

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

14 Society sent 15 captive-bred bison from the New 

15 York Zoological Park, now known as the ‘‘Bronx 

16 Zoo’’, to the first wildlife refuge in the United 

17 States, which was known as the ‘‘Wichita Mountains 

18 Wildlife Refuge’’, resulting in the first successful re19 introduction of a mammal species on the brink of ex20 tinction back into the natural habitat of the species; 

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

22 reestablished, bringing together bison ranchers, 

23 managers from Indian tribes, Federal and State 

24 agencies, conservation organizations, and natural 

25 and social scientists from the United States, CanVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:59 Dec 07, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2032.RFH S2032

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1 ada, and Mexico to create a vision for the North 

2 American bison in the 21st century; 

3 (14) there are bison herds in National Wildlife 

4 Refuges and National Parks; 

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

6 across 11 States; 

7 (16) there is a growing effort to celebrate and 

8 officially recognize the historical, cultural, and eco9 nomic significance of the North American bison to 

10 the heritage of the United States; 

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

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

13 the official mammal or animal of those States; 

14 (19) a bison has been depicted on the official 

15 seal of the Department of the Interior since 1912; 

16 (20) the buffalo nickel played an important role 

17 in modernizing the currency of the United States; 

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

19 mascot, which highlights the iconic significance of 

20 bison in the United States; 

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

22 22 Senators led a successful effort to enact a resolu23 tion to designate November 1, 2014, as the second 

24 annual National Bison Day; and 


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

2 conservationists, sportsmen, educators, and other 

3 public and private partners have participated in the 

4 annual National Bison Day celebration at several 

5 events across the United States and are committed 

6 to continuing this tradition annually on the first 

7 Saturday of November. 

8 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT AND ADOPTION OF THE NORTH 

9 AMERICAN BISON AS THE NATIONAL MAM10 MAL. 

11 The mammal commonly known as the ‘‘North Amer12 ican bison’’ is adopted as the national mammal of the 

13 United States. 

Passed the Senate December 3, 2015. 

Attest: JULIE E. ADAMS, 

Secretary. 


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