I 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5697 

To support wildlife conservation, improve anti-trafficking enforcement, provide 

dedicated funding for wildlife conservation at no expense to taxpayers, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 8, 2018 

Ms. BORDALLO (for herself and Mr. YOUNG of Alaska) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, 

and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, 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 wildlife conservation, improve anti-trafficking enforcement, provide dedicated funding for wildlife conservation at no expense to taxpayers, 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 ‘‘Wildlife Conservation 

5 and Anti-Trafficking Act of 2018’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

2 The purposes of this Act are to— 

3 (1) direct Federal agencies to implement au4 thorities under current law to reward whistleblowers 

5 who furnish information that leads to an arrest, 

6 criminal conviction, civil penalty assessment, or for7 feiture of property for any wildlife trafficking viola8 tion; 

9 (2) provide a standardized process for deter10 mining and adjudicating awards to whistleblowers 

11 under such authorities; 

12 (3) amend the Marine Turtle Conservation Act 

13 of 2004 (16 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) to make United 

14 States territories eligible for Federal funding and as15 sistance and provide for the conservation of fresh16 water turtles and tortoises under such Act; 

17 (4) direct any fines, penalties, and forfeitures of 

18 property from violations of the Marine Mammal Pro19 tection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) to sup20 port marine mammal conservation; 

21 (5) direct any fines, penalties, and forfeitures of 

22 property from shark finning violations under the 

23 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Man24 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) to support 

25 shark conservation; 


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1 (6) authorize the International Wildlife Con2 servation Program to be administered by the United 

3 States Fish and Wildlife Service; 

4 (7) authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 

5 station United States Fish and Wildlife Service offi6 cials in high-intensity wildlife trafficking areas 

7 abroad; 

8 (8) make wildlife trafficking a predicate offense 

9 under section 1892 of title 18, United States Code 

10 (popularly known as the Travel Act), and the racket11 eering prohibitions (RICO) of chapter 96 of such 

12 title; 

13 (9) direct any civil penalties, fines, forfeitures, 

14 and restitution from wildlife trafficking violations 

15 under section 1892 of title 18, United States Code 

16 (popularly known as the Travel Act), and the racket17 eering prohibitions (RICO) of chapter 96 of such 

18 title to support wildlife conservation; 

19 (10) make violations for illegal, unreported, and 

20 unregulated fishing under the Magnuson-Stevens 

21 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

22 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) a predicate offense under the 

23 money laundering statute (section 1956 of title 18, 

24 United States Code); and 


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1 (11) direct any civil penalties, fines, forfeitures, 

2 and restitution from wildlife trafficking violations of 

3 money laundering statutes (including section 1956 

4 of title 18, United States Code, as enacted by Public 

5 Law 114–231) to support wildlife conservation. 

6 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) FOCUS COUNTRY.—The term ‘‘focus coun9 try’’ has the meaning given to that term by the 

10 Eliminate, Neutralize, and Disrupt Wildlife Traf11 ficking Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–231; 16 

12 U.S.C. 7601 et seq.). 

13 (2) RANGE STATE.—The term ‘‘range State’’ 

14 means a foreign country, a freely associated state 

15 (pursuant to the Compact of Free Association au16 thorized by Public Law 99–239), or any territory or 

17 possession of the United States, any portion of 

18 which is within the natural range of distribution of 

19 a wildlife species. 

20 (3) SHARK.—The term ‘‘shark’’ means any spe21 cies of the orders Hexanchiformes, Pristiophori22 formes, Squaliformes, Squatiniformes, Heterodonti23 formes, Orectolobiformes, Lamniformes, and Car24 chariniformes. 


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1 (4) SPECIES.—The term ‘‘species’’ has the 

2 meaning given that term in section 3 of the Endan3 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1532). 

4 (5) WILDLIFE.—The term ‘‘wildlife’’ has the 

5 meaning given to the term ‘‘fish or wildlife’’ in sec6 tion 3 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

7 U.S.C. 1532). 

8 (6) WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING.—The term ‘‘wild9 life trafficking’’ has the meaning given to that term 

10 by the Eliminate, Neutralize, and Disrupt Wildlife 

11 Trafficking Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–231; 16 

12 U.S.C. 7601 et seq.). 

13 (7) TAKE.—The term ‘‘take’’ has the meaning 

14 given to that term by the Endangered Species Act 

15 of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1532(19)). 

16 SEC. 4. WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING WHISTLEBLOWERS. 

17 (a) PLAN OF ACTION.—In coordination with other 

18 Federal agencies as appropriate, the Secretary of the Inte19 rior, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of State, 

20 the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Attorney General 

21 shall within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 

22 Act develop a plan of action to fully implement existing 

23 authorities for rewards to whistleblowers of violations of 

24 anti-wildlife-trafficking laws. Such plan of action shall— 


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1 (1) include a strategy to raise public awareness 

2 in the United States and abroad for reward opportu3 nities for whistleblowers provided under— 

4 (A) section 6(d) of the Lacey Act Amend5 ments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 3375(d)); 

6 (B) section 11(d) of the Endangered Spe7 cies Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1540(d)); 

8 (C) section 106(c) of the Marine Mammal 

9 Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1376(c)); 

10 (D) section 3 of the Fish and Wildlife Im11 provement Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 742l); 

12 (E) section 7(f) of the Rhinoceros and 

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

14 5305a(f)); and 

15 (F) other applicable anti-wildlife-traf16 ficking laws; 

17 (2) delineate short-term and long-term goals for 

18 increasing anti-wildlife-trafficking enforcement in19 cluding recruitment of whistleblowers, as appro20 priate; 

21 (3) describe specific actions to be taken to 

22 achieve such goals and the means necessary to do so, 

23 including— 

24 (A) formal partnerships with nongovern25 mental organizations; and 


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1 (B) the establishment of Whistleblower Of2 fices to coordinate the receipt of whistleblower 

3 disclosures, ensure referrals to the appropriate 

4 law enforcement offices, and communicate with 

5 whistleblowers regarding the status of their re6 spective cases and potential rewards; 

7 (4) be published on the internet website of the 

8 Federal Register for public comment for no fewer 

9 than 60 days; and 

10 (5) be finalized within 90 days after the end of 

11 the public comment period and made readily avail12 able on a public Government internet website. 

13 (b) UPDATES TO PLAN OF ACTION.—In coordination 

14 with other Federal agencies as appropriate, the Secretary 

15 of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary 

16 of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Attorney 

17 General shall review the plan of action under subsection 

18 (a) at least every 5 years and update it, as appropriate, 

19 following public notice and comment. 

20 (c) AWARDS TO WHISTLEBLOWERS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—If any of the Secretaries re22 ferred to in subsection (b), or the Attorney General, 

23 proceeds with any administrative or judicial action 

24 under any of the laws referred to in subsection (a) 

25 based on information brought to the Secretary’s or 


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1 the Attorney General’s attention by a person quali2 fied to receive an award under this subsection, such 

3 Secretary or the Attorney General, respectively, shall 

4 pay such person an award, subject to paragraph (2), 

5 in an amount that is at least 15 percent but not 

6 more than 50 percent of the amounts received by the 

7 United States as penalties, interest, fines, forfeit8 ures, community service payments, restitution pay9 ments, and additional amounts in such action (in10 cluding any related civil or criminal actions) or any 

11 under settlement or plea agreement in response to 

12 such action. The Secretary or the Attorney General, 

13 as applicable, shall determine the amount of such 

14 award based on the extent to which the person sub15 stantially contributed to such action. The amount of 

16 the award shall be determined within 90 days after 

17 the date of the applicable plea agreement, judgment, 

18 or settlement or plea agreement in such action, and 

19 shall be paid from the amounts so received by the 

20 United States. 

21 (2) REDUCTION IN OR DENIAL OF AWARD.—If 

22 the Secretary or Attorney General determines that 

23 the claim for an award under paragraph (1) is 

24 brought by a person who planned and initiated the 

25 actions that led to the violation, then the Secretary 


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1 or Attorney General may appropriately reduce such 

2 award. If such person is convicted of criminal con3 duct arising from the role described in the preceding 

4 sentence, the Secretary or Attorney General shall 

5 deny any award. 

6 (3) APPEAL OF AWARD DETERMINATION.—Any 

7 determination regarding an award under paragraph 

8 (1) may, within 30 days after the date of such deter9 mination, be appealed to the appropriate United 

10 States Court of Appeals pursuant to section 706 of 

11 title 5, United States Code. 

12 (4) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—The Secre13 taries and the Attorney General shall permit the 

14 submission of confidential and anonymous reports 

15 under this section consistent with the procedures set 

16 forth in subsections (d)(2) and (h) of section 21F of 

17 the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 

18 78u–6(d)(2) and (h)). 

19 (5) APPLICATION OF PARAGRAPH (1).—The pro20 cedures set forth in paragraph (1) shall be applica21 ble only in a case in which the total sanction from 

22 all penalties, fines, community service payments, res23 titution, interest, forfeitures, or civil or criminal re24 coveries (including in related actions) exceeds 

25 $100,000. 


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1 (6) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretaries and the 

2 Attorney General shall each year conduct a study 

3 and report to Congress on the use of authorities, 

4 claims filed, awards paid, and outreach conducted 

5 under this section. Such report requirement may be 

6 satisfied by incorporating such report into the plan 

7 of action required under subsection (a) and updates 

8 under subsection (b). 

9 (7) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.—This sec10 tion shall apply only with respect to amounts re11 ceived by the United States referred to in paragraph 

12 (1) on or after the date of the enactment of this sec13 tion. 

14 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF INTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE 

15 CONSERVATION PROGRAM. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall 

17 carry out the International Wildlife Conservation Program 

18 within the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to— 

19 (1) implement global habitat and conservation 

20 initiatives under the jurisdiction of the Secretary; 

21 (2) address global conservation threats; 

22 (3) combat wildlife trafficking, poaching, and 

23 the trade in illegal wildlife products; 

24 (4) provide financial, scientific, and other tech25 nical assistance; 


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1 (5) facilitate implementation of treaties, conven2 tions, accords, or similar international agreements 

3 entered into by the United States to promote fish, 

4 wildlife, plant, or habitat conservation; and 

5 (6) carry out other international wildlife con6 servation and habitat activities authorized by Fed7 eral law, as considered appropriate by the Secretary. 

8 (b) PROGRAM COMPONENTS.—The Program shall in9 clude the following: 

10 (1) REGIONAL COMPONENT.—A regional com11 ponent that shall— 

12 (A) address grassroots conservation prob13 lems through capacity building within regions of 

14 range States to achieve comprehensive land15 scape or ecosystem-level fish or wildlife con16 servation; and 

17 (B) develop and implement a plan to— 

18 (i) expand existing regional wildlife 

19 conservation programs as considered ap20 propriate by the Secretary; and 

21 (ii) establish new regional conserva22 tion programs in other critical landscapes 

23 and wildlife habitat globally, including the 

24 Asia-Pacific Region. 


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1 (2) SPECIES COMPONENT.—A species compo2 nent that shall be comprised of administration of the 

3 programs authorized by— 

4 (A) the African Elephant Conservation Act 

5 (16 U.S.C. 4201 et seq.); 

6 (B) the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation 

7 Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.); 

8 (C) the Asian Elephant Conservation Act 

9 of 1997 (16 U.S.C. 4261 et seq.); 

10 (D) the Great Ape Conservation Act of 

11 2000 (16 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.); 

12 (E) the Marine Turtle Conservation Act of 

13 2004 (16 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.); 

14 (F) the Neotropical Migratory Bird Con15 servation Act (16 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.); 

16 (G) Wild Bird Conservation Act of 1992 

17 (16 U.S.C. 4901 et seq.); 

18 (H) the Critically Endangered Animals 

19 Conservation Fund established by the Secretary 

20 and administered by the United States Fish 

21 and Wildlife Service; and 

22 (I) any similar authority provided to the 

23 Secretary of the Interior concerning wildlife 

24 conservation internationally. 


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1 (3) ANTI-TRAFFICKING COMPONENT.—An anti2 trafficking component that shall be comprised of ad3 ministration of the programs authorized by— 

4 (A) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

5 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 

6 (B) the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 

7 (16 U.S.C. 3371 et seq.); 

8 (C) subsections (a) and (d) of section 8 of 

9 the Fishermen’s Protective Act of 1967 (22 

10 U.S.C. 1978); 

11 (D) the Eliminate, Neutralize, and Disrupt 

12 Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016 (16 U.S.C. 

13 7601 et seq.); 

14 (E) other applicable anti-wildlife-traf15 ficking laws; and 

16 (F) activities authorized by section 6 of 

17 this Act. 

18 (4) CONVENTION COMPONENT.—A convention 

19 component that shall be comprised of the Division of 

20 Management Authority and the Division of Scientific 

21 Authority to implement the Convention on Inter22 national Trade in Endangered Species of Wild 

23 Fauna and Flora (CITES) under section 8A of the 

24 Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1537a) 


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1 and carry out other related duties, as considered ap2 propriate by the Secretary. 

3 (c) ADDITIONAL COMPONENTS.—The Secretary of 

4 the Interior may include additional components in the 

5 Program as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

6 (d) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAW.—Nothing in this 

7 section alters the responsibilities of the Secretary of the 

8 Interior under section 8 of the Fish and Wildlife Act of 

9 1956 (16 U.S.C. 742g) and the Endangered Species Act 

10 of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

11 (e) ACCEPTANCE AND USE OF DONATIONS.—In ad12 ministering the Program, the Secretary of the Interior 

13 may accept donations of funds, gifts, and in-kind contribu14 tions and use such donations without further appropria15 tion for capacity building, grants, and other on-the-ground 

16 uses carried out by the program components authorized 

17 by this section. 

18 SEC. 6. USFWS OFFICERS ABROAD. 

19 (a) PLACEMENT OF OFFICERS.—The Secretary of 

20 the Interior, in consultation with the Secretary of State, 

21 may station at least one United States Fish and Wildlife 

22 Service officer in the primary United States diplomatic or 

23 consular post in— 

24 (1) each focus country; 


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1 (2) each foreign country certified by the Sec2 retary of the Interior under section 8(a) of the Fish3 ermen’s Protective Act of 1967 (22 U.S.C. 1978(a)) 

4 as a significant transit or destination point for wild5 life trafficking; or 

6 (3) other countries identified by the Secretary 

7 of the Interior, in consultation with the Secretary of 

8 State. 

9 (b) DUTIES.—United States Fish and Wildlife Serv10 ice officers stationed under subsection (a) shall— 

11 (1) assist local wildlife rangers in the protection 

12 of wildlife and on-the-ground conservation; 

13 (2) facilitate apprehension of individuals who il14 legally kill or take, or assist the illegal killing or tak15 ing of, wildlife; 

16 (3) support local wildlife rangers, host country 

17 agencies, and regional partners in wildlife trafficking 

18 investigations; 

19 (4) support United States-based wildlife traf20 ficking investigations with nexus to host country or 

21 region; 

22 (5) provide technical assistance and support to 

23 build capacity in-country for wildlife conservation 

24 and anti-trafficking enforcement by host country 

25 partner agencies; 


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1 (6) advise on leveraging United States Govern2 ment assets in combating wildlife trafficking; 

3 (7) support effective implementation of the 

4 Convention on International Trade in Endangered 

5 Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and 

6 other international agreements pertaining to wildlife 

7 conservation, in coordination with the Secretary of 

8 State; 

9 (8) work to reduce global demand for illegally 

10 traded wildlife products and illegally taken wildlife; 

11 and 

12 (9) conduct other duties considered appropriate 

13 by the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with 

14 the Secretary of State, to combat wildlife trafficking 

15 and promote conservation of at-risk species. 

16 SEC. 7. AMENDMENT OF MARINE TURTLE CONSERVATION 

17 ACT OF 2004. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Marine Turtle Conservation 

19 Act of 2004 (Public Law 108–266) is amended— 

20 (1) in section 2(b) (16 U.S.C. 6601(b))— 

21 (A) in the heading, by striking ‘‘PURPOSE’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘PURPOSES’’; and 

23 (B) by striking ‘‘purpose of this Act is’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘purposes of this Act are’’; 


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1 (2) in sections 2(b) and 3(2) (16 U.S.C. 

2 6601(b), 6602(2)), by inserting ‘‘and territories of 

3 the United States’’ after ‘‘foreign countries’’ each 

4 place it occurs; 

5 (3) in section 3 (16 U.S.C. 6602)— 

6 (A) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking ‘‘and 

7 regional’’ and inserting ‘‘, regional, and terri8 torial’’; 

9 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘Marine 

10 Turtle Conservation Fund’’ and inserting ‘‘Tur11 tle and Tortoise Conservation Fund’’; 

12 (C) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘(l) FRESHWATER TURTLE.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘freshwater 

16 turtle’ means any member of the family Caret17 tochelyidae, Chelidae, Chelydridae, Dermatemy18 didae, Emydidae, Geoemydidae, Kinosternidae, 

19 Pelomedusidae, Platysternidae, Podocnemidi20 dae, or Trionychidae. 

21 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘freshwater 

22 turtle’ includes— 

23 ‘‘(i) any part, product, egg, or off24 spring of a turtle described in subpara25 graph (A); and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a carcass of such a turtle.’’; 

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

3 ‘‘(l) TERRITORY OF THE UNITED STATES.— 

4 The term ‘territory of the United States’ means each 

5 of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of 

6 the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth 

7 of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, 

8 and any other territory or possession of the United 

9 States. 

10 ‘‘(l) TORTOISE.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘tortoise’ 

12 means any member of the family Testudinidae. 

13 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘tortoise’ in14 cludes— 

15 ‘‘(i) any part, product, egg, or off16 spring of a tortoise described in subpara17 graph (A); and 

18 ‘‘(ii) a carcass of such a tortoise.’’; 

19 and 

20 (E) by redesignating the paragraphs of 

21 such section in order as paragraphs (1) through 

22 (9); 

23 (4)(A) in each of sections 2(a)(4), 2(a)(5), 

24 2(a)(8), and 2(a)(9) (16 U.S.C. 6601(a)(4), 

25 6601(a)(5), and 6601(a)(9)), by striking ‘‘marine 


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1 turtle’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘marine 

2 turtle, freshwater turtle, and tortoise’’; 

3 (B) in each of sections 4(b) and 4(d), (16 

4 U.S.C. 6603(b) and 6603(d)), by striking ‘‘marine 

5 turtle’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘marine 

6 turtle, freshwater turtle, or tortoise’’; 

7 (C) in each of sections 2(a)(5), 2(a)(6), 2(a)(7), 

8 2(a)(9), 2(b), and 4(a) (16 U.S.C. 6601(a)(5), 

9 6601(a)(6), 6601(a)(7), 6601(a)(9), 6601(b), and 

10 6603(a)), by striking ‘‘marine turtles’’ each place it 

11 appears and inserting ‘‘marine turtles, freshwater 

12 turtles, and tortoises’’; 

13 (D) in each of sections 3(2), 4(b), 4(d), 4(e), 

14 and 6(a) (16 U.S.C. 6602(2), 6603(b), 6603(d), 

15 6603(e), and 6605(a)), by striking ‘‘marine turtles’’ 

16 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘marine turtles, 

17 freshwater turtles, or tortoises’’; 

18 (E) in the heading for section 4 (16 U.S.C. 

19 6603), by striking ‘‘MARINE TURTLE’’ and insert20 ing ‘‘TURTLE AND TORTOISE’’; and 

21 (F) in section 5 (16 U.S.C. 6604)— 

22 (i) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘MA23 RINE TURTLE’’ and inserting ‘‘TURTLE AND

24 TORTOISE’’; and 


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1 (ii) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘Marine 

2 Turtle’’ and inserting ‘‘Turtle and Tortoise’’— 

3 (I) by striking ‘‘Marine Turtle’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘Turtle and Tortoise’’; 

5 (5) in section 4 (16 U.S.C. 6603)— 

6 (A) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by inserting 

7 ‘‘or territory of the United States’’ after ‘‘for8 eign country’’; and 

9 (B) in subsection (d) by inserting ‘‘or ter10 ritories of the United States’’ after ‘‘foreign 

11 countries’’; 

12 (6) in section 5(a) (16 U.S.C. 6604(a)), by 

13 striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end of 

14 paragraph (2), striking the period at the end of 

15 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding 

16 at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(4) any amounts received by the United States 

18 for any violation of law pertaining to marine turtles, 

19 freshwater turtles, or tortoises under the Endan20 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), 

21 the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 

22 3371 et seq.), or regulations implementing those 

23 Acts, including such amounts received as— 

24 ‘‘(A) fines or penalties; 


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1 ‘‘(B) proceeds from sales of forfeited prop2 erty, assets, or cargo; or 

3 ‘‘(C) restitution to the Federal Govern4 ment.’’; and 

5 (7) in section 7 (16 U.S.C. 6606)— 

6 (A) by inserting before the text the fol7 lowing: ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’; and 

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

9 ‘‘(b) ALLOCATION.—Of the amount authorized by 

10 subsection (a) for each fiscal year— 

11 ‘‘(1) an amount not exceeding $1,510,000 is 

12 authorized only for use by the Secretary for marine 

13 turtle conservation purposes under this Act; and 

14 ‘‘(2) of the amount appropriated in excess of 

15 $1,510,000, not less than 40 percent is authorized 

16 only for use by the Secretary for freshwater turtle 

17 and tortoise conservation purposes under this Act.’’. 

18 SEC. 8. FUNDING FOR MARINE MAMMAL CONSERVATION. 

19 All amounts collected by the Secretary of Commerce, 

20 including fines, penalties, and proceeds from sales of for21 feited assets or cargo, for violations of the Marine Mam22 mal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) or 

23 regulations implementing that Act shall be used by the 

24 Secretary for— 


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1 (1) the benefit of the marine mammal species 

2 impacted by the applicable violation, to the extent 

3 practicable; 

4 (2) marine mammal conservation purposes, as 

5 determined by the Secretary; 

6 (3) responding to marine mammal strandings, 

7 entanglements, or unusual mortality events, includ8 ing activities under the John H. Prescott Marine 

9 Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program author10 ized by section 408 of the Marine Mammal Protec11 tion Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 4121f–1); 

12 (4) payment of awards to whistleblowers on the 

13 applicable violation under section 4(c) of this Act; or 

14 (5) enforcement of the Marine Mammal Protec15 tion Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) and regu16 lations implementing that Act. 

17 SEC. 9. FUNDING FOR SHARK CONSERVATION. 

18 All amounts available to the Secretary of Commerce 

19 that are attributable to fines, penalties, and forfeitures of 

20 property (or proceeds from the sale of such forfeited prop21 erty) imposed for violations under section 307(1)(P) of the 

22 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage23 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(1)(P)) or violations of any fish24 ery management plan for sharks under that Act shall be 

25 used by the Secretary for— 


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1 (1) the benefit of the shark species impacted by 

2 the applicable violation, to the extent practicable; 

3 (2) shark conservation purposes, including to 

4 carry out the provisions of law enacted by the Shark 

5 Conservation Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–348); 

6 (3) payment of awards to whistleblowers on the 

7 applicable violation under section (4)(c) of this Act; 

8 or 

9 (4) enforcement of section 307(1)(P) of the 

10 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Man11 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(1)(P)) or any fishery 

12 management plan for sharks under that Act. 

13 SEC. 10. WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING VIOLATIONS AS PREDI14 CATE OFFENSES UNDER TRAVEL ACT AND 

15 RACKETEERING STATUTE. 

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

17 States Code, is further amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (b)— 

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

20 ‘‘(3)’’; and 

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

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

23 act that is a criminal violation of any of sub24 paragraphs (A) through (F) of section 9(a)(1) 

25 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 


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1 U.S.C. 1538(a)(1)), section 2203 of the African 

2 Elephant Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 4223), 

3 or section 7(a) of the Rhinoceros and Tiger 

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

5 5305a(a)), if the endangered or threatened spe6 cies of fish or wildlife, products, items, or sub7 stances involved in the violation and relevant 

8 conduct, as applicable, have a total value of 

9 more than $10,000 and (ii)’’; and 

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

11 ‘‘(f) The Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to 

12 the Secretary of the Interior any amounts received by the 

13 United States as civil penalties, fines, forfeitures of prop14 erty or assets, or restitution to the Federal Government 

15 for any violation under this section that involves an unlaw16 ful activity described in subsection (b)(i)(4).’’. 

17 (b) RICO.—Chapter 96 of title 18, United States 

18 Code, is amended— 

19 (1) in section 1961(1)— 

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

21 ‘‘(G)’’; and 

22 (B) by inserting before the semicolon at 

23 the end the following: ‘‘, or (H) any act that is 

24 a criminal violation of any of subparagraphs 

25 (A) through (F) of section 9(a)(1) of the EnVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:12 May 15, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5697.IH H5697

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1 dangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

2 1538(a)(1)), section 2203 of the African Ele3 phant Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 4223), or 

4 section 7(a) of the Rhinoceros and Tiger Con5 servation Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 5305a(a)), if 

6 the endangered or threatened species of fish or 

7 wildlife, products, items, or substances involved 

8 in the violation and relevant conduct, as appli9 cable, have a total value of more than 

10 $10,000’’; and 

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

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(n) The Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to 

14 the Secretary of the Interior any amounts received by the 

15 United States as civil penalties, fines, forfeitures of prop16 erty or assets, or restitution to the Federal Government 

17 for any violation of section 1962 that is based on racket18 eering activity described in section 1961(1)(H).’’. 

19 (c) SPORT-HUNTED TROPHIES.—Nothing in this sec20 tion and the amendments made by this section nullifies 

21 or supersedes any other provision of Federal law and regu22 lations pertaining to the import of sport-hunted wildlife 

23 trophies. Nothing in this section or any amendments made 

24 by this section shall be— 


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1 (1) construed to prohibit any citizen or legal 

2 resident of the United States, or an agent of such 

3 an individual, from importing a lawfully taken sport4 hunted trophy for personal or similar noncommercial 

5 use if such importation is in compliance with sec6 tions 4(d) and 10 of the Endangered Species Act of 

7 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(d) and 1539), section 3(a) of 

8 the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 

9 3372(a)), and regulations implementing those sec10 tions; or 

11 (2) used to prosecute any citizen or legal resi12 dent of the United States, or an agent of such an 

13 individual, for importing a lawfully taken sport-hunt14 ed trophy for personal or similar noncommercial use 

15 if such importation is in compliance with sections 

16 4(d) and 10 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

17 (16 U.S.C. 1533(d) and 1539), section 3(a) of the 

18 Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 U.S.C. 

19 3372(a)), and regulations implementing those sec20 tions. 

21 SEC. 11. ILLEGAL, UNREPORTED, AND UNREGULATED FISH22 ING AS PREDICATE OFFENSES UNDER MONEY 

23 LAUNDERING STATUTE. 

24 Section 1956(c)(7) of title 18, United States Code, 

25 is amended— 


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1 (1) in subparagraph (F), by striking ‘‘; or’’ and 

2 inserting a semicolon; 

3 (2) in subparagraph (G), by striking the semi4 colon and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

5 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(H) any act that is a violation of sub7 paragraph (Q) of paragraph (1) of section 307 

8 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 

9 and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(1)(Q)), 

10 if the fish involved in the violation and relevant 

11 conduct, as applicable, have a total value of 

12 more than $10,000.’’. 

13 SEC. 12. FUNDS FROM WILDLIFE TRAFFICKING VIOLA14 TIONS OF MONEY LAUNDERING STATUTE. 

15 Section 1956 of title 18, United States Code, is fur16 ther amended by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(j) The Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to 

18 the Secretary of the Interior any amounts received by the 

19 United States as civil penalties, fines, forfeitures of prop20 erty or assets, or restitution to the Federal Government 

21 for any violation under this section that involves an unlaw22 ful activity described in subsection (c)(7)(G).’’. 


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1 SEC. 13. USES OF TRANSFERRED FUNDS FOR CONSERVA2 TION. 

3 All amounts made available to the Secretary of the 

4 Interior under section 10 and section 12 shall be used— 

5 (1) for the benefit of the species impacted by 

6 the applicable violation, to the extent practicable; 

7 (2) for payment of rewards under section 4(c) 

8 on the applicable violation; or 

9 (3) to carry out— 

10 (A) the African Elephant Conservation Act 

11 (16 U.S.C. 4201 et seq.); 

12 (B) the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation 

13 Act of 1994 (16 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.); 

14 (C) the Asian Elephant Conservation Act 

15 of 1997 (16 U.S.C. 4261 et seq.); 

16 (D) the Great Ape Conservation Act of 

17 2000 (16 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.); 

18 (E) the Marine Turtle Conservation Act of 

19 2004 (16 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.); 

20 (F) the Neotropical Migratory Bird Con21 servation Act (16 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.); 

22 (G) the Wild Bird Conservation Act of 

23 1992 (16 U.S.C. 4901 et seq.); 

24 (H) the Critically Endangered Animals 

25 Conservation Fund established by the Secretary 


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1 and administered by the United States Fish 

2 and Wildlife Service; and 

3 (I) any other wildlife conservation pro4 grams or activities authorized by Federal law, 

5 as considered appropriate by the Secretary, in6 cluding activities pursuant to sections 5 and 6 

7 of this Act. 

8 SEC. 14. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

9 (a) USE OF AMOUNTS FROM FINES.—Section 

10 1402(b)(1)(A) of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (42 

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

12 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’; and 

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

14 ‘‘(iii) 1952(e), 1956(j), and 1963(n) 

15 of title 18, United States Code; and’’. 

16 (b) USE OF AMOUNTS FROM FORFEITURES.—Sec17 tion 524(c)(4)(A) of title 28, United States Code, is 

18 amended by inserting before ‘‘or the Postmaster General’’ 

19 the following: ‘‘, the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant 

20 to section 1952(e), 1956(j), or 1963(n) of title 18,’’. 

Æ 


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