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For Immediate Release
12/09/06
Contact: |
Joe Brenckle - Republican Press Office 202-224-3991
Brian Eaton w/Stevens 202-224-0445
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Congress Passes Polar Bear Treaty Act of 2006
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congress this week approved the United States-Russia Polar Bear Conservation and Management Act of 2006. The measure was included as part of H.R. 5946, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006. The original Senate bill, which implements the provisions of bilateral treaty between the United States and Russia on the Conservation and Management of the Alaska-Chukotka Polar Bear Population (“Polar Bear Agreement”), was introduced by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and is cosponsored by Committee Co-Chairman Senator Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) and Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).
“This bill will simultaneously support the conservation of United States and Russian polar bear populations and the subsistence lifestyle of Alaska’s Native people,” said Chairman Stevens. “The shared populations of polar bears that migrate between our two nations deserve the added protections and conservation measures this bill will provide.”
This act will amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act by adding provisions to implement and enforce the Polar Bear Agreement. It prohibits the possession, import, export, transport, sale, receipt, acquisition, or purchase of any polar bear (or any part or product thereof) that is taken in violation of the Treaty, and provides for enforcement of violations. It also establishes a process by which one representative of the United States government and one representative of the Native people of Alaska will be appointed to serve on the bi-national United States and Russian Polar Bear Commission established by the Polar Bear Agreement. This Commission will determine annual take limits and the adoption of other measures to restrict the taking of polar bears for subsistence purposes. The Commission will also identify polar bear habitats and “develop recommendations for habitat conservation measures.”
The bill also included language by the Senate Commerce Committee to authorize $1 million for the Secretary of the Interior, $150,000 for the Polar Bear Commission, and $150,000 for the Alaskan Cooperative Management Program to oversee conservation management and subsistence harvests in Alaska. These amounts are authorized annually for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010.
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9th - |
Senate Approves Resolution Honoring NOAA/Coast and Geodetic Survey
- WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Senate this week approved a resolution (S. Res. 628) honoring the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the 200th anniversary of its Coast and Geodetic Survey (CGS), originally authorized by President Thomas Jefferson. The Resolution recognizes the bicentennial of the Coast and Geodetic Survey’s two centuries of contributions t...
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9th - |
Senate Approves Pretexting Legislation
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WASHINGTON, D.C.
– The United States Senate today passed H.R. 4709, the Telephone Records and Privacy Protection Act of 2006. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) was a co-sponsor of the Senate companion to the House legislation, S. 2178. The measure will criminalize the practice of “pretexting,” which consists of obtaining confidential phone records info...
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current Press Release |
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7th - |
Congress Approves Wool Suit Labeling Act
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WASHINGTON, D.C.
–Congress this week unanimously approved H.R. 4583, Wool Suit Fabric Labeling Fairness and International Standards Conforming Act sponsored by Rep. Marsha Blackburn (TN-7). The measure will now be sent to the President for his consideration.
H.R. 4583, the Wool Suit Fabric Labeling Fairness and International Standards Conforming Act, amends the Wool Products Labeling Ac...
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