II 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3248 

To designate the North American bison as the national mammal of the 

United States. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 24, 2012 

Mr. ENZI (for himself, Mr. JOHNSON of South Dakota, Mr. CONRAD, Mr. 

HOEVEN, Mr. THUNE, Mr. BENNET, Mr. UDALL of Colorado, Mr. 

MORAN, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, Mr. JOHANNS, and Mr. WHITEHOUSE) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To designate the North American 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, 

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 to be a historical sym9 bol of the United States; 


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1 (2) bison were integrally linked with the eco2 nomic and spiritual lives of many Indian tribes 

3 through trade and sacred ceremonies; 

4 (3) there are more than 60 Indian tribes par5 ticipating in the Intertribal Buffalo Council; 

6 (4) numerous members of Indian tribes— 

7 (A) are involved in bison restoration on 

8 tribal land; and 

9 (B) have a combined herd on more than 

10 1,000,000 acres of tribal land; 

11 (5) the Intertribal Buffalo Council is a tribal 

12 organization incorporated pursuant to section 17 of 

13 the Act of June 18, 1934 (commonly known as ‘‘In14 dian Reorganization Act’’) (25 U.S.C. 477); 

15 (6) bison play an ecologically important role in 

16 modifying and improving the types of grasses found 

17 in landscapes to the benefit of grassland ecosystems; 

18 (7) a bison has been depicted on the official 

19 seal of the Department of the Interior almost con20 tinuously for 94 years; 

21 (8) a bison is portrayed on 2 State flags; 

22 (9) the bison has been adopted by 3 States as 

23 the official mammal of those States; 

24 (10) the buffalo nickel played an important role 

25 in modernizing the currency of the United States; 


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1 (11) several sports teams have the bison as a 

2 mascot, which highlights the iconic significance of 

3 bison in the United States; 

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

5 Theodore Roosevelt, and others formed the Amer6 ican Bison Society in response to the near extinction 

7 of bison in the United States; 

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

9 Society sent 15 bison to the first big game refuge 

10 in the United States, which was known as the 

11 ‘‘Wichita Reserve Bison Refuge’’; 

12 (14) in 2005, the American Bison Society was 

13 reestablished, bringing together bison ranchers, 

14 managers from Indian tribes, Federal and State 

15 agencies, conservation organizations, and natural 

16 and social scientists from the United States, Can17 ada, and Mexico to create a vision for the North 

18 American bison in the 21st century; 

19 (15) bison hold significant economic value for 

20 private producers and rural communities; 

21 (16) as of 2007, the United States had 4,499 

22 bison producers creating jobs and providing a sus23 tainable and healthy meat source contributing to the 

24 food security of the United States; 


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1 (17) there are bison herds in National Wildlife 

2 Refuges and National Parks; and 

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

4 conservationists, sportsmen, educators, and other 

5 public and private partners have committed to spear6 heading a national celebration of the North Amer7 ican bison, to be held annually on the first Thursday 

8 of November. 

9 SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF THE NORTH AMERICAN BISON AS 

10 THE NATIONAL MAMMAL. 

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

13 United States. 

Æ 


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