I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2494 

To support global anti-poaching efforts, strengthen the capacity of partner 

countries to counter wildlife trafficking, designate major wildlife trafficking countries, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 21, 2015 

Mr. ROYCE (for himself, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. POE of Texas, Mr. KEATING, Mr. 

SMITH of New Jersey, Ms. BASS, Mr. CRENSHAW, Ms. MCCOLLUM, and 

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

Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on the 

Judiciary and Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To support global anti-poaching efforts, strengthen the capacity of partner countries to counter wildlife trafficking, 

designate major wildlife trafficking countries, and for 

other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Global Anti-Poaching 

5 Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Poaching and the illicit trade in endangered 

4 and threatened wildlife are among the most lucrative 

5 criminal activities worldwide, worth an estimated $7 

6 to $10 billion annually. 

7 (2) Poaching and wildlife trafficking have esca8 lated in scale, sophistication and violence, risking the 

9 potential extinction of some of the world’s most 

10 iconic species. 

11 (3) Wildlife poaching and trafficking threaten 

12 elephants, rhinoceros, and tigers greatly, but also 

13 have devastating impact on a number of other spe14 cies, including sharks, great apes, and turtles. 

15 (4) Researchers conservatively estimate that 

16 some 22,000 African elephants were poached in 

17 2012 alone, leaving the current population of ele18 phants around 400,000, down from approximately 

19 1.3 million in 1979. 

20 (5) An average of 14 rhinos were killed annu21 ally by poachers in South Africa between 1990 and 

22 2005, but more than 1,200 rhinos were poached in 

23 South Africa alone in 2014. 

24 (6) Fewer than 3,200 tigers remain in the wild 

25 and these remaining wild tigers are under heavy 


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1 threat of poaching for their skins, bones and other 

2 body parts. 

3 (7) The high demand for rare wildlife products 

4 has driven prices to historically high levels. 

5 (8) Much of the demand for wildlife products 

6 comes from Asia and is fueled by the perceived me7 dicinal value and social status associated with these 

8 products. 

9 (9) Reporting indicates that a number of rebel 

10 groups and terrorist organizations, including Su11 dan’s Janjaweed militia, the Lord’s Resistance 

12 Army, the Seleka rebel movement in the Central Af13 rican Republic, and Somalia’s al-Shabaab, either 

14 participate in or draw funding from illicit wildlife 

15 trafficking networks. 

16 (10) Analyses suggest the high demand for ille17 gal wildlife products, combined with weak law en18 forcement and security measures and corruption and 

19 governance failures, has led to the increased involve20 ment of transnational organized crime in wildlife 

21 trafficking. 

22 (11) The United Nations Security Council has 

23 authorized multilateral sanctions against individuals 

24 and entities supporting armed groups through the il25 licit trade in wildlife, in addition to other natural reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 May 28, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2494.IH H2494

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1 sources, in the Democratic Republic of Congo and 

2 the Central African Republic. 

3 (12) A National Intelligence Council analysis of 

4 wildlife poaching threats found that certain African 

5 government officials facilitated the movement of 

6 wildlife products, and that these governments’ ability 

7 to reduce poaching and trafficking was hindered by 

8 corruption and weak rule of law. 

9 (13) On November 13, 2013, the Secretary of 

10 State announced the first reward under the 

11 Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program 

12 for information leading to the dismantling of the 

13 Xaysavang Network, a large wildlife trafficking syn14 dicate that is based in Laos and spans Africa and 

15 Asia. 

16 (14) On July 1, 2013, the President issued Ex17 ecutive Order 13648 on combating wildlife traf18 ficking, establishing a Presidential Task Force which 

19 was responsible for producing a national strategy to 

20 combat wildlife trafficking. 

21 (15) On February 13, 2014, more than 40 

22 countries, including the United States, European 

23 Union, and countries from Africa, Asia, the Middle 

24 East, and Latin America, participated in the Lon25 don Conference on the Illegal Wildlife Trade and 


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1 committed to a declaration which recognized the sig2 nificant scale and detrimental economic, social and 

3 environmental consequences of the illegal trade in 

4 wildlife. 

5 SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF WILDLIFE ENFORCEMENT NET6 WORKS. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Wildlife enforcement networks are govern9 ment-led, regionally-focused mechanisms that in10 crease capacity and coordination efforts between law 

11 enforcement, environmental agencies, and other enti12 ties focused on countering wildlife trafficking of 

13 member countries. 

14 (2) Currently there are active wildlife enforce15 ment networks in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and 

16 Central America. The more mature wildlife enforce17 ment networks, such as the Southeast Asia wildlife 

18 enforcement network, have proven effective in dis19 mantling transnational wildlife trafficking networks 

20 and bringing to justice those individuals involved in 

21 the illegal trade of endangered and threatened spe22 cies. 

23 (3) Efforts are underway to establish additional 

24 wildlife enforcement networks in Central Africa, the 


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1 Horn of Africa, South America, and Central and 

2 West Asia, among other regions. 

3 (b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—The Secretary of 

4 State, the Administrator of the United States Agency for 

5 International Development, the Director of the United 

6 States Fish and Wildlife Service, and heads of other ap7 propriate agencies should, in an effort to address regional 

8 threats to biodiversity and conservation, support strength9 ening existing wildlife enforcement networks and the es10 tablishment of new networks in other appropriate regions. 

11 (c) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con12 gress that in the process of strengthening and expanding 

13 wildlife enforcement networks, the appropriate agencies 

14 should— 

15 (1) assess the existing capacity of wildlife en16 forcement network member countries to gather base17 line data that may be used for developing program 

18 activities for the wildlife enforcement network; 

19 (2) establish a central secretariat within each 

20 wildlife enforcement network that will coordinate the 

21 operational mechanisms of each such network; 

22 (3) establish a focal mechanism in each member 

23 country of a wildlife enforcement network, that in24 cludes representatives from environmental and wild25 life protection agencies, law enforcement agencies, fiVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 May 28, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2494.IH H2494

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1 nancial intelligence units, customs and border pro2 tection agencies, and the judiciary system, that will 

3 serve as a conduit to the larger wildlife enforcement 

4 network and the central secretariat; 

5 (4) strengthen cooperation and the capacity of 

6 law enforcement agencies of the wildlife enforcement 

7 network; 

8 (5) facilitate the sharing of intelligence and rel9 evant case information within the agencies of a wild10 life enforcement network; 

11 (6) support the cooperation and coordination 

12 between different regional wildlife enforcement net13 works; 

14 (7) incorporate and utilize expertise from inter15 national bodies and civil society organizations that 

16 have appropriate subject matter expertise; and 

17 (8) eventually create an institutionalized, sus18 tainable, and self-sufficient platform. 

19 SEC. 4. SUPPORTING THE PROFESSIONALIZATION OF THE 

20 WILDLIFE LAW ENFORCEMENT SECTOR. 

21 The Secretary of State, the Administrator of the 

22 United States Agency for International Development, the 

23 Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, 

24 and heads of other appropriate agencies, including the Na25 tional Park Service and the United States Forest Service, 


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1 should, in an effort to address local and regional threats 

2 to biodiversity and conservation and support the rule of 

3 law and good governance, promote the professionalization 

4 of the wildlife law enforcement sector and professional 

5 ranger training in partner countries through support and 

6 technical assistance for the following: 

7 (1) The creation and adoption of standards for 

8 professional ranger training and qualifications, in9 cluding in relevant international fora and multilat10 eral agreements. 

11 (2) Training and accreditation systems based 

12 on the standards described in paragraph (1) that 

13 produce professionally trained and qualified rangers 

14 and promote the overall professionalization of ranger 

15 forces, whether through existing United States insti16 tutions, such as International Law Enforcement 

17 Academies, or through partnerships with national or 

18 regional training institutions. 

19 (3) Legal reforms, where necessary, to provide 

20 rangers with authority to detain and arrest suspects, 

21 process crime scenes, present evidence in court, and 

22 defend themselves in life threatening situations. 

23 (4) The development and institutionalization of 

24 reward and promotion systems for rangers based on 

25 performance and set competencies. 


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1 (5) The development and institutionalization of 

2 national systems to provide insurance to rangers and 

3 their families and compensation for those rangers 

4 killed in the line of duty. 

5 (6) Cooperation and coordination between local 

6 law enforcement tasked with wildlife or park protec7 tion and defense forces, where appropriate, including 

8 training opportunities, logistical support, or provi9 sion of equipment. 

10 SEC. 5. DESIGNATION OF MAJOR WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING 

11 COUNTRIES AND AUTHORITY TO WITHHOLD 

12 CERTAIN ASSISTANCE. 

13 (a) REPORT.—Not later than September 15 of each 

14 year, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Sec15 retary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce, 

16 shall submit to Congress a report that lists each foreign 

17 country determined to be a major source of wildlife traf18 ficking products or their derivatives, a major transit point 

19 of wildlife trafficking products or their derivatives, or a 

20 major consumer of wildlife trafficking products or their 

21 derivatives. 

22 (b) SPECIAL DESIGNATION.—In each report required 

23 under subsection (a), the Secretary of State, in consulta24 tion with the Secretary of Interior and the Secretary of 

25 Commerce, shall— 


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1 (1) designate each country listed in the report 

2 that has failed demonstrably, during the previous 

3 12-month period, to make substantial efforts to ad4 here to its obligations under international agree5 ments relating to endangered or threatened species; 

6 and 

7 (2) include a short justification for each deter8 mination made under paragraph (1). 

9 (c) WITHHOLDING OF ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 

10 of State may withhold assistance described in subsection 

11 (d) with respect to each foreign country that is specially 

12 designated under subsection (b). 

13 (d) ASSISTANCE DESCRIBED.—The assistance de14 scribed in this subsection are sections 516, 524, and 541 

15 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2321j, 

16 2344, or 2347), chapter 6 of part II of the Foreign Assist17 ance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2348 et seq.), and section 

18 23 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2763). 

19 (e) NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary of State shall no20 tify— 

21 (1) the government of each foreign country that 

22 is listed in the report required under subsection (a) 

23 that the country has been so listed; and 

24 (2) the government of each foreign country that 

25 is specially designated under subsection (b) and is 


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1 subject to the withholding of assistance described in 

2 subsection (c). 

3 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE SECURITY ASSISTANCE TO 

4 COUNTER WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING AND 

5 POACHING IN AFRICA. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President is authorized to 

7 provide defense articles, defense services, and related 

8 training to security forces of countries of Africa for the 

9 purpose of countering wildlife trafficking and poaching. 

10 (b) TYPES OF ASSISTANCE.—Assistance provided 

11 under subsection (a) may include intelligence and surveil12 lance assets, communications and electronic equipment, 

13 mobility assets, night vision and thermal imaging devices, 

14 and organizational clothing and individual equipment, 

15 pursuant to the applicable provisions of the Arms Export 

16 Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.), the Foreign Assist17 ance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.), and other rel18 evant provisions of law. 

19 (c) SPECIAL RULE.—Assistance provided under sub20 section (a) shall be in addition to any other assistance pro21 vided to the countries referred to in such subsection under 

22 any other provision of law. 

23 (d) PROHIBITION ON ASSISTANCE.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—No assistance may be pro25 vided under subsection (a) to a unit of a security 


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1 force of a country of Africa if the President deter2 mines that the unit has been found to engage in 

3 wildlife trafficking or poaching. 

4 (2) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition in paragraph 

5 (1) shall not apply with respect to a unit of a secu6 rity force of a country of Africa if the President de7 termines that the government of the country is tak8 ing effective steps to hold the unit accountable and 

9 prevent the unit from engaging in trafficking and 

10 poaching. 

11 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

12 (1) DEFENSE ARTICLE, DEFENSE SERVICE, 

13 AND TRAINING.—The terms ‘‘defense article’’, ‘‘de14 fense service’’, and ‘‘training’’ have the meanings 

15 given such terms in section 47 of the Arms Export 

16 Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2794 note). 

17 (2) SECURITY FORCE.—The term ‘‘security 

18 force’’ means a military, law enforcement, gendar19 merie, park ranger, or any other security force with 

20 responsibility for protecting wildlife and natural 

21 habitats. 

22 SEC. 7. UPDATES TO THE FISHERMEN’S PROTECTIVE ACT 

23 OF 1967. 

24 Section 8 of the Fishermen’s Protective Act of 1967 

25 (22 U.S.C. 1978) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)— 

2 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘, in 

3 consultation with the Secretary of State,’’ after 

4 ‘‘Secretary of Commerce’’; 

5 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘, in 

6 consultation with the Secretary of State,’’ be7 fore ‘‘finds’’; 

8 (C) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘in con9 sultation with the Secretary of State,’’ after ‘‘, 

10 as appropriate,’’; and 

11 (D) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

12 paragraph (5), and by inserting after paragraph 

13 (3) the following: 

14 ‘‘(4) The Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary 

15 of the Interior shall each report to the Congress each cer16 tification to the President made by such Secretary under 

17 this subsection, within 15 days after making such certifi18 cation.’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘‘in consulta20 tion with the Secretary of State,’’ after ‘‘as the case 

21 may be,’’. 


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1 SEC. 8. WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING VIOLATIONS AS PREDI2 CATE OFFENSES UNDER RACKETEERING AND 

3 MONEY LAUNDERING STATUTES. 

4 (a) TRAVEL ACT.—Section 1952 of title 18, United 

5 States Code, is amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (b)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘or (3)’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘(3)’’; and 

9 (B) by striking ‘‘of this title and (ii)’’ and 

10 inserting the following: ‘‘of this title, or (4) any 

11 act that is a criminal violation of section 

12 9(a)(1) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

13 (16 U.S.C. 1538(a)(1)), section 2203 of the Af14 rican Elephant Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 

15 4223), or section 7(a) of the Rhinoceros and 

16 Tiger Conservation Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 

17 5305a(a)), if the endangered or threatened spe18 cies, products, items, or substances involved in 

19 the violation and relevant conduct, as applica20 ble, have a total value of more than $10,000 

21 and (ii)’’; and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(f) USE OF AMOUNTS FROM FINES, FORFEITURES, 

24 AND RESTITUTION RELATING TO WILDLIFE TRAF25 FICKING VIOLATIONS.—Any amounts received by the 

26 United States as fines, forfeitures of property or assets, 


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1 or restitution to the Government for any violation under 

2 this section that involves an unlawful activity described in 

3 subsection (b)(i)(4) shall be transferred by the Secretary 

4 of the Treasury, to the extent practicable, to the Multi5 national Species Conservation Fund and used for the ben6 efit of the species impacted by the applicable violation.’’. 

7 (b) MONEY LAUNDERING.—Section 1956 of title 18, 

8 United States Code, is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (c)(7)— 

10 (A) in subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘or’’ 

11 at the end; 

12 (B) in subparagraph (F), by adding ‘‘or’’ 

13 at the end; and 

14 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(G) any act or acts constituting a crimi16 nal violation of section 9(a)(1) of the Endan17 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

18 1538(a)(1)), section 2203 of the African Ele19 phant Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 4223), or 

20 section 7(a) of the Rhinoceros and Tiger Con21 servation Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 5305a(a)), if 

22 the endangered or threatened species, products, 

23 items, or substances involved in the violation 

24 and relevant conduct, as applicable, have a total 

25 value of more than $10,000;’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(j) USE OF AMOUNTS FROM CIVIL PENALTIES, 

3 FINES, FORFEITURES, AND RESTITUTION RELATING TO

4 WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING VIOLATIONS.—Any amounts re5 ceived by the United States as fines, forfeitures of prop6 erty or assets, or restitution to the Government for any 

7 violation under this section that involves an unlawful activ8 ity described in subsection (c)(7)(G) shall be transferred 

9 by the Secretary of the Treasury, to the extent practicable, 

10 to the Multinational Species Conservation Fund and used 

11 for the benefit of the species impacted by the applicable 

12 violation.’’. 

13 (c) RICO.—Chapter 96 of title 18, United States 

14 Code, is amended— 

15 (1) in section 1961(1)— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘or (G)’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘(G)’’; and 

18 (B) by inserting before the semicolon at 

19 the end the following: ‘‘, or (H) any act consti20 tuting a criminal violation of section 9(a)(1) of 

21 the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

22 1538(a)(1)), section 2203 of the African Ele23 phant Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 4223), or 

24 section 7(a) of the Rhinoceros and Tiger Con25 servation Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 5305a(a)), if 


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1 the endangered or threatened species, products, 

2 items, or substances involved in the violation 

3 and relevant conduct, as applicable, have a total 

4 value of more than $10,000’’; and 

5 (2) in section 1963, by adding at the end the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(n) USE OF AMOUNTS FROM FINES, FORFEITURES, 

8 AND RESTITUTION RELATING TO WILDLIFE TRAF9 FICKING VIOLATIONS.—Any amounts received by the 

10 United States as fines, forfeitures of property or assets, 

11 or restitution to the Government for any violation under 

12 section 1962 that is based on racketeering activity de13 scribed in section 1961(1)(H) shall be transferred by the 

14 Secretary of the Treasury, to the extent practicable, to the 

15 Multinational Species Conservation Fund and used for the 

16 benefit of the species impacted by the applicable viola17 tion.’’. 

18 (d) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

19 (1) USE OF AMOUNTS FROM FINES.—Section 

20 1402(b)(1)(A) of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 

21 (42 U.S.C. 10601(b)(1)(A)) is amended— 

22 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

23 end; and 

24 (B) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(iii) sections 1952(e), 1956(j), and 

2 1963(n) of title 18, United States Code; 

3 and’’. 

4 (2) USE OF AMOUNTS FROM FORFEITURES.— 

5 Section 524(c)(4)(A) of title 28, United States Code, 

6 is amended by inserting before ‘‘or the Postmaster 

7 General’’ the following: ‘‘under section 1952(f), 

8 1956(j), or 1963(n) of title 18,’’. 

Æ 


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