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Read. Follow. Verify.Proposed Law to Allow Import of Certain Polar Bear Trophies
Last action · July 15, 2026: Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by Voice Vote.Sponsors: Nicholas Begich and 2 others
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What This Bill Would Do
This bill would require the Secretary of the Interior to issue permits for the importation of polar bear parts from s in Canada. The permits would apply only to polar bears legally harvested before specific dates in 1997 and 2008.
The bill changes federal permitting requirements, allowing individuals who legally hunted polar bears in Canada before the species was listed as threatened to bring those trophies into the United States.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Individuals who legally hunted polar bears in Canada before 2008
These individuals gain a legal pathway to import their trophies into the United States.
Secretary of the Interior
The Secretary is mandated to process and issue permits for these specific trophy imports.
Key Facts
- The bill mandates the Secretary of the Interior to issue permits for the importation of polar bear parts (excluding internal organs) from Canadian sport hunts.
- Permits are restricted to polar bears legally harvested before February 18, 1997.
- Permits are also available for polar bears legally harvested before May 15, 2008, from populations that were eligible for import at that time.
- Permits for bears harvested before February 18, 1997, are exempt from specific existing regulatory requirements, including sections 101 and 102 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Show all 7 facts
- Permits for bears harvested before May 15, 2008, are also exempt from sections 101 and 102 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
- The Secretary must issue these permits expeditiously after a 30-day review period.
- The bill was introduced on November 21, 2025, in the 119th Congress.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this bill allow for new polar bear hunting?
What parts of the polar bear can be imported under this bill?
What else do you want to know?
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
7 actions- Jul 15, 2026HouseCommitteeOrdered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by Voice Vote.
- Jul 15, 2026HouseCommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Jul 15, 2026HouseSubcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Discharged
- Apr 16, 2026HouseSubcommittee Hearings Held
- Apr 9, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred to the Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries.
- Nov 21, 2025HouseCommitteeReferred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Show 1 earlier action
- Nov 21, 2025HouseIntroducedIntroduced in House
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Exemption from existing protections
The bill explicitly bypasses sections 101 and 102 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act for these specific permit applications.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.congress.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance40How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy50Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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