I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1727 
To prohibit use of body-gripping traps by personnel of the Department of 
the Interior and the Department of Agriculture and on lands of such 
departments. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 27, 2017 
Mr. BLUMENAUER (for himself and Mrs. LOWEY) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addi-
tion to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently de-
termined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To prohibit use of body-gripping traps by personnel of the 
Department of the Interior and the Department of Agri-
culture and on lands of such departments. 
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 ‘‘Limiting Inhumane 
Federal Trapping Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. PROHIBITION OF USE OF BODY-GRIPPING TRAPS BY 
PERSONNEL AND ON LANDS OF THE DEPART-
MENTS 
OF 
THE 
INTERIOR 
AND 
AGRI-
CULTURE. 
(a) PROHIBITIONS.—Except as provided in sub-
section (b)— 
(1) no personnel of the Department of the Inte-
rior or the Department of Agriculture may, in per-
formance of their duties, use, recommend, train re-
garding the use of, or plan for use of, any body-grip-
ping trap; and 
(2) no person shall use or possess any body- 
gripping trap on property under the administrative 
jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior or the 
Department of Agriculture, without regard to wheth-
er the person is employed by, or working under a 
contract with, the Department of the Interior or the 
Department of Agriculture. 
(b) EXCEPTIONS.— 
(1) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) shall not 
apply with respect to use of a body-gripping 
trap to— 
(i) control documented, invasive spe-
cies to achieve resource management objec-
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tives where alternative methods have 
failed; or 
(ii) protect a species that is— 
(I) listed as an endangered spe-
cies or threatened species under the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); or 
(II) treated by the Forest Service 
as a sensitive species. 
(B) CONDITIONS.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) 
shall not apply unless— 
(I) such use of a body-gripping 
trap is in accordance with applicable 
State and Federal law; 
(II) prior to use of a body-grip-
ping trap, all available and viable non-
lethal methods for such control or 
protection, 
respectively, 
are 
at-
tempted; and 
(III) such attempts are docu-
mented in writing, and such docu-
mentation is maintained at the head-
quarters of the department that em-
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ploys the individual engaging in such 
attempt. 
(ii) 
NONLETHAL
METHODS
DE-
SCRIBED.—For purposes of clause (i)(II), 
the term ‘‘nonlethal methods’’— 
(I) except as provided in sub-
clause (II), includes exclusions or bar-
riers, harassment and scaring devices, 
and other methods that do not result 
in the death of target or nontarget 
species; and 
(II) does not include any body- 
gripping device. 
(2) TRAINING.—Subsection (a)(1) shall not 
apply with respect to training in the dismantling of 
body-gripping traps that have been illegally placed. 
(3) INDIAN COUNTRY.—Subsection (a)(2) shall 
not apply with respect to use of a body-gripping trap 
in the Indian country. 
(c) PENALTIES.— 
(1) KNOWING
VIOLATIONS.—Any person who 
knowingly violates or fails to comply with this Act 
or any regulation issued under this Act shall be 
fined under title 18, United States Code, or impris-
oned for not more than 1 year, or both. 
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(2) OTHER VIOLATIONS.—Any person who oth-
erwise violates or fails to comply with this Act or 
any such regulation shall be fined under title 18, 
United States Code, or imprisoned not more than 
180 days, or both. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) BODY-GRIPPING
TRAP.—The term ‘‘body- 
gripping trap’’— 
(A) except as provided in subparagraph 
(B), means any device that is intended to kill 
or capture an animal by physically restraining 
any part of the animal on land or in an aquatic 
environment, including any— 
(i) spring traps, including steel-jaw, 
padded, enclosed and dog-proof, or other 
modified foothold or leghold traps; 
(ii) kill-type trap, including Conibear 
and body-crushing traps; 
(iii) snare traps, including foot snares 
and strangling neck snares; and 
(iv) modified version of any such a 
trap; and 
(B) does not include any— 
(i) cage or box trap; or 
(ii) suitcase-type live beaver trap. 
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