I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3538 
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a Wildlife Confiscations 
Network, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 21, 2025 
Mr. GARBARINO (for himself and Mr. QUIGLEY) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a Wildlife 
Confiscations Network, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wildlife Confiscations 
Network Act of 2025’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Wildlife trafficking is a continued and grow-
ing threat to our national security, hinders sustain-
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able economic development, and undermines our 
laws. 
(2) The connections between trafficking in ille-
gal wildlife and natural resources with the financing 
of groups involved in transnational organized crime 
pose additional threats to the United States. 
(3) President Donald J. Trump’s Executive 
Order No. 13773 demonstrated continued support 
for Enforcing Federal Law with Respect to 
Transnational Criminal Organizations and Pre-
venting International Trafficking. 
(4) The Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 
U.S.C. 3371 et seq.) prohibits the importation, ex-
portation, transportation, sale, receipt, acquisition, 
or purchase of any fish or wildlife or plant taken, 
possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any 
law, treaty, or regulation of the United States or 
any Indian tribal law, or foreign law. 
(5) Congress remains strongly committed to 
combating wildlife trafficking and transnational or-
ganized crime. 
(6) The United States border is secured by 
Federal agents and inspectors responsible for identi-
fication, seizure, confiscation and holding of illegal 
imports, including a diverse array of live wild ani-
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mals, notably at U.S. ports of entry or exit with an 
increased burden seen in Los Angeles, Miami, and 
across the Southern border. 
(7) Customs and wildlife enforcement officers at 
ports of entry have limited holding capacity, care ex-
perience, and transportation options for interdicted 
live wildlife. 
(8) Numerous species of wildlife require exten-
sive quarantine protocols to protect domestic live-
stock and wildlife, beyond the capacity of our ports 
and borders, that can be administered by facilities 
within the Wildlife Confiscations Network. 
(9) When illegally imported live wild animals 
and plants are seized at U.S. ports of entry, it is 
critical for law enforcement to obtain forensic docu-
mentation, maintain evidentiary integrity, and en-
sure the health, wellbeing, and proper care of all 
seized wildlife and plants in government custody. 
(10) From 2015 to 2019, the U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service had 834 cases involving live wildlife 
interdiction, which included 48,793 individual live 
animals, an average of nearly 30 per day, requiring 
placement and care. 
(11) In 2023, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Serv-
ice and Association of Zoos and Aquariums formed 
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a cooperative agreement to implement a pilot net-
work in southern California to lessen the logistical 
burden by serving as a point of contact to coordinate 
placement and care of seized live animals while 
maintaining legal chain of custody. 
(12) The Wildlife Confiscations Network pro-
vides a cooperative and coordinated response for the 
care and wellbeing of wildlife confiscated from illegal 
trade at United States border crossings and points 
of entry in Southern California from the point of sei-
zure to placement or repatriation and, in just 2 
years, has successfully placed over 4,100 individual 
animals into care. 
(13) Confiscation of trafficked plants and ani-
mals is critical to preventing their re-entry into ille-
gal trade, empowering law enforcement to document 
and maintain evidence of and effectively combat ille-
gal wildlife trafficking. 
(14) The Wildlife Confiscations Network clearly 
aligns with OMB Circular A–76 by supporting wild-
life law enforcement, an inherently governmental 
function, and removing the placement and care of 
confiscated live wildlife from government responsi-
bility. It must be extended and expanded nationwide 
to allow law enforcement officers across the country 
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to focus on their mission and mandate in combating 
wildlife crime. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) CITES SPECIES.—The term ‘‘CITES spe-
cies’’ means an animal species that is listed in one 
of the Appendices of the Convention on International 
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and 
Flora. 
(2) 
COMMITTEE.—The 
term 
‘‘Committee’’ 
means the committee established under section 
4(b)(3). 
(3) CONFISCATED
ANIMAL.—The term ‘‘con-
fiscated animal’’ means an individual of a CITES 
species or a threatened or endangered species that 
is— 
(A) seized at or en route to or from a port 
or border of the United States; and 
(B) placed at a qualified animal care facil-
ity for provision of general care and welfare to 
such individual. 
(4) NETWORK.—The term ‘‘Network’’ means 
the Wildlife Confiscations Network established under 
section 4(a). 
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(5) QUALIFIED ANIMAL CARE FACILITY.—The 
term ‘‘qualified animal care facility’’ means a zoolog-
ical facility, aquarium facility, wildlife sanctuary, 
animal rescue organization, animal rehabilitation or-
ganization, nongovernmental organization, university 
that has been reviewed by the Committee and— 
(A) that, as of the date of the enactment 
of this Act, provides care to an individual of a 
CITES species or a threatened or endangered 
species; or 
(B) has expertise in the care of wildlife 
and has received and provided care for a con-
fiscated animal within the 5 years preceding the 
date of the enactment of this Act. 
(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di-
rector of the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv-
ice. 
(7) THREATENED OR ENDANGERED SPECIES.— 
The term ‘‘threatened or endangered species’’ means 
an animal species that is listed under the Endan-
gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
seq.)— 
(A) as a threatened species; or 
(B) as an endangered species. 
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SEC. 4. WILDLIFE CONFISCATIONS NETWORK. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish a 
voluntary, cooperative program, in partnership with a pro-
fessional accrediting zoological association with existing 
capacity and expertise in wildlife confiscations, to assist 
Federal wildlife law enforcement agencies with the place-
ment and care of confiscated animals, to be known as the 
‘‘Wildlife Confiscations Network’’. 
(b) FUNCTIONS.—The Network shall— 
(1) establish a cooperative and coordinated re-
sponse protocol for the care and welfare of con-
fiscated animals; 
(2) create and maintain a database of qualified 
animal care facilities to provide immediate triage 
needs and long-term housing and care for con-
fiscated animals; 
(3) establish a committee within the Network to 
review and approve or reject applications for inclu-
sion in the Network submitted under subsection (c) 
by entities listed in paragraph (1) of that subsection; 
and 
(4) act as the single point of contact for Fed-
eral wildlife law enforcement agencies to assist in 
the placement and care of confiscated animals in 
qualified zoological facilities. 
(c) MEMBERSHIP.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Each of the following enti-
ties may submit to the Committee an application to 
join the Network: 
(A) Wildlife sanctuaries. 
(B) Aquarium facilities. 
(C) Zoological facilities. 
(D) Animal rescue organizations. 
(E) Animal rehabilitation organizations. 
(F) Universities. 
(G) Nongovernmental organizations. 
(2) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—An applica-
tion submitted under paragraph (1) by an entity 
listed in that paragraph shall contain information 
sufficient for the Committee to determine whether 
such entity— 
(A) has, as determined by the Committee, 
the necessary credentials, including all nec-
essary local, State, and Federal permits and li-
censes; and 
(B) is an effective, responsible, and appro-
priate entity capable of assisting Federal wild-
life law enforcement agencies in the placement 
and care of confiscated animals. 
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