Extinction Crisis Emergency Act of 2021
This bill requires the President to declare the global wildlife extinction crisis a national emergency and to take certain actions to restore wildlife.
Specifically, the President shall direct the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to
The Departments of Commerce and the Interior must, after accepting public comment, conduct annual reviews of every nation's compliance with any international fishery conservation program or international program for endangered or threatened species, and take specified actions.
The President must enlist all federal agencies to help fight the wildlife extinction crisis by directing each federal agency to take specified actions to prioritize the recovery of endangered species and to rebuild healthy wildlife and plant populations, including by fully integrating climate change concerns into the conservation and recovery of endangered species.
The President must direct the Department of Defense to prioritize the protection of endangered species and rare habitats on U.S. military installations around the world.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4182 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4182
To require the President to declare the global wildlife extinction
crisis a national emergency under the National Emergencies Act, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 25, 2021
Ms. Newman (for herself, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr. Jones, Mr. Takano,
Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Cleaver, Mrs. Hayes, Mr. Cohen, and Ms.
Tlaib) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the
Committees on Natural Resources, and Armed Services, 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 require the President to declare the global wildlife extinction
crisis a national emergency under the National Emergencies Act, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Extinction Crisis Emergency Act of
2021''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The world is in the midst of a global wildlife
extinction crisis.
(2) The extinction rate today is 1,000 times greater than
the natural background rates established over millions of
years.
(3) Wildlife and plant populations are rapidly declining,
with 1,000,000 species facing extinction in the coming decades
due to threats of habitat loss, climate change, wildlife
exploitation, pollution and other human activities.
(4) Unlike past mass-extinction events, the current sixth
mass extinction is a problem entirely caused by human-driven
forces.
(5) The drivers of the global wildlife extinction crisis
will also degrade the life-support systems of societies around
the world, including water purification, oxygen production,
carbon sequestration, and disease regulation.
(6) Stopping the extinction crisis and restoring abundant
wildlife populations will require strong implementation of the
Endangered Species Act and other wildlife laws including the
Migratory Bird Treaty Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act.
(7) The global wildlife extinction crisis and the
destruction of the planet's natural life-support systems
represents a fundamental threat to humanity and constitutes an
emergency of the highest order.
SEC. 3. EMERGENCY DECLARATION.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment
of this Act, the President shall declare a national emergency under
section 201 of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1621) with
respect to the wildlife extinction crisis.
(b) Response.--In responding to the national emergency declared
pursuant to subsection (a), the President shall--
(1) direct the Secretary of Interior, through the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Secretary of
Commerce, through the National Marine Fisheries Service (as
applicable), to--
(A) move rapidly to--
(i) review all species within the United
States that are identified as--
(I) critically imperiled by
NatureServe; or
(II) critically endangered,
endangered, or vulnerable by the
International Union for the
Conservation of Nature; and
(ii) to use all authorities to propose and
finalize protections for all species that may
warrant protection under the Endangered Species
Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.);
(B) establish new national wildlife refuges and new
marine protected areas pursuant to the authority
granted in--
(i) National Wildlife Refuge System
Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd et
seq.);
(ii) sections 320301 through 320303 of
title 54, United States Code; and
(iii) the National Marine Sanctuary Act (16
U.S.C. 1431 et seq.);
(C) pursuant to the section 8(a)(3) of the
Fishermen's Protective Act (22 U.S.C. 1978(a)(3)), the
Secretary of Commerce or the Secretary of the Interior
shall--
(i) after accepting public comment, conduct
annual reviews of every nation's compliance
with any international fishery conservation
program or international program for endangered
or threatened species, including the Convention
on International Trade in Endangered Species of
Wild Fauna and Flora (27 UST 1087; TIAS 8249),
and publish a Federal Register notice
identifying each nation violating one or more
international fishery conservation program or
international program for endangered or
threatened species;
(ii)(I) for any such nations identified, if
the Secretary of Commerce or Secretary of
Interior finds that significant efforts are
being made to come into compliance but
additional resources or capacity are needed,
provide financial aid, capacity building or
technology transfers, and a set a compliance
schedule of less than 3 years that, if not met,
will result in certification under subclause
(II);
(II) unless subclause (I) applies, certify
that such nation is violating an international
fishery conservation program or international
program for endangered or threatened species;
and
(iii) no later than 90 days after a
certification is made, impose trade penalties
unless the President objects;
(2) enlist all Federal agencies to help fight the wildlife
extinction crisis by directing each Federal agency to--
(A) prioritize the recovery of endangered species
and rebuild healthy wildlife and plant populations by
developing and finalizing, not later than 12 months
after the date of enactment of this Act, proactive
conservation programs pursuant to section 7(a)(1) of
the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1536(a)(1)), that
advance the conservation of endangered species and help
restore declining wildlife and plants;
(B) work with the United States Fish and Wildlife
Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to
identify and protect, not later than 12 months after
the date of enactment of this Act, all lands within
their respective jurisdictions that may meet the
statutory requirements of critical habitat pursuant to
section 4(a)(3)(B) of the Endangered Species Act of
1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(a)(3)(B)), and to manage those
lands primarily for the recovery of endangered species;
and
(C) fully integrate climate change concerns into
the conservation and recovery of endangered species,
including in all aspects of domestic and international
conservation laws and treaties; and
(3) direct the Department of Defense to prioritize the
protection of endangered species and rare habitats on United
States military installations around the world.
(c) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, and each year thereafter, the President shall submit to
Congress a report describing actions taken in response to the national
emergency declared pursuant to subsection (a).
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on Natural Resources, and Armed Services, 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.
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on Natural Resources, and Armed Services, 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.
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on Natural Resources, and Armed Services, 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.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife.
Llama 3.2 · runs locally in your browser
Ask anything about this bill. The AI reads the full text to answer.
Enter to send · Shift+Enter for new line