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[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 745 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 745

     To require the National Park Service to eradicate brucellosis 
   afflicting the bison in Yellowstone National Park, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                  May 3 (legislative day, May 1), 1995

    Mr. Burns (for himself, Mr. Craig, Mr. Simpson, and Mr. Thomas) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
               Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
     To require the National Park Service to eradicate brucellosis 
   afflicting the bison in Yellowstone National Park, 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. YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK BISON.

    (a) Testing, Culling, Vaccination, and Relocation.--The Secretary 
of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park 
Service, shall--
            (1) perform a blood test of each bison in the herd 
        inhabiting Yellowstone National Park for brucellosis;
            (2) in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, 
        acting through the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health 
        Inspection Service and the State Veterinarians of the States of 
        Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming, vaccinate and restrain under 
        quarantine restrictions each bison that tests negative for 
        brucellosis in accordance with a protocol established under the 
        law of the States of Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming, to prevent 
        transmission of brucellosis to susceptible animals;
            (3)(A) slaughter or neuter each bison that tests positive 
        for brucellosis, each bison that cannot be tested, and each 
        bison that tests negative but cannot be restrained under 
        quarantine restriction; and
            (B) make the carcass or neutered bison available for use by 
        Indian tribes and other suitable recipients;
            (4) engage the services of a team of independent range 
        scientists to determine the optimum population of bison that 
        the land available for the herd in Yellowstone National Park is 
        capable of sustaining;
            (5) in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, 
        appropriate officials of Indian tribes, the States of Idaho, 
        Montana, and Wyoming, and other interested parties, identify 
        locations outside the Park that would be suitable for 
        sustaining herds of bison created from any excess number of 
        bison in the Yellowstone herd that are certified as being free 
        of brucellosis, in accordance with standards established under 
        the law of the States of Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming; and
            (6) after brucellosis has been eradicated, continue to 
        reduce the population of the Yellowstone herd to a number that 
        is approximately 500 below the optimum population by 
        transferring the excess number of bison to locations identified 
        under paragraph (5).
    (b) Time for Action.--The Secretary of the Interior shall--
            (1) initiate action under subsection (a) as soon as 
        practicable, and in any event not later than December 31, 1995; 
        and
            (2) complete all of the actions required by subsection (a) 
        not later than December 31, 1998.
    (c) No Surplus Bison.--After December 31, 1998, the Secretary of 
the Interior shall take all action necessary to ensure that the number 
of bison in the Yellowstone herd does not exceed the optimum population 
determined under subsection (a)(4).
                                 <all>
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