Update (June 5, 2015): Unfortunately, the bill failed to pass in 2015.
Bill Description:
Prohibits any person from selling, offering to sell, purchasing, importing, bartering, or possessing with intent to sell ivory or rhinoceros horn. Ivory is defined the tooth or tusk from any animal, including elephant, hippopotamus, narwhal, walrus, or whale.[teaserbreak]
Exemptions:.
• Importation expressly authorized by federal license or permit.
• An employee or agent of the federal or state government undertaking any law enforcement activity pursuant to federal or state law.
• Transferring possession of ivory or rhino horn to a legal beneficiary upon the death of the owner of the item, or in anticipation of the owner’s death.
• Bona fide educational or scientific purposes at a university or hospital.
Background:
African elephants are nearing extinction due to the high price of ivory and consumer demand. An average of 96 elephants are slaughtered daily by poachers, and over 100,000 have been killed in the past 3 years. Read more about the horrific ivory trade here.
The U.S. is the second largest ivory market in the world, after China. Legislation banning the trade in these products will reduce the demand, which in turn will reduce the killing.
Read the full text here.