Please join the Reptile Nation in a Congressional Call In Opposing HR2811 aka The Python Ban November 2, 3 & 4. If you value your Boas & Pythons you will participate and encourage your entire sphere of influence to do the same. There is a Hearing in front of the House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism & Homeland Security scheduled for November 5th. Please call in and OPPOSE HR281.

As originally written HR2811 would add the entire genus python to the Injurious Wildlife List of the Lacey Act. This would effectively end the Import, Export and Interstate Transport of any animals listed. In July USARK was successful in narrowing the scope of the bill by removing most pythons with an amendment offered by Congressman Tom Rooney. The amendment would limit the bill to the Burmese Python and the African Python. In addition committee staff agreed in principle to further amend the bill to allow the captive bred trade in these two snakes to continue. To date this promise has not been kept and the HR2811 has not been amended to allow for captive bred trade.

Meanwhile the USGS Risk Assessment of 9 Large Constricting Snakes has been released. The Humane Society of the United States is lobbying hard to have HR2811 amended to include the entire genus python, as well as the four species of anaconda, and Boa Constrictor referred to in the USGS report. Do not assume that HSUS will not be successful in getting HR2811 amended to reflect these changes. Only USARK and the Reptile Nation stand between HSUS and the destruction of our community.

Our science experts have done a cursory analysis of the USGS report and characterize it as “…loose with numerous mistakes and inaccuracies. It is an oversimplification of a very complicated topic.” The bottom line is it is not the solid piece of science HSUS wanted to use as a tool to break the back of our community. However that has not stopped them from mischaracterizing it as just that.

What can I do?

***November 2,3 & 4 Call In and Fax the Subcommittee and voice your opposition to HR2811. Be polite & professional!

Script:
My name is____. I oppose HR2811. It is overly simplistic and politically driven. It is poorly thought out and sacrifices good science for political expediency. The negative economic impact for my family and business would be significant. Please oppose HR2811. Thank you for your consideration.

Call List:
Sponsor:

Congressman Kendrick Meek (D-FL), Sponsor
Washington DC: phone 202-225-4506; fax 202-226-0777
Miami: phone 305-690-5905; fax 305-690-5951

Cosponsors:

Congressman Alcee Hastings (D-FL)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-1313; fax 202-225-8398
Ft. Lauderdale: phone 954-733-2800

Congressman John Lewis (D-GA)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-3801; fax 202-225-0351
Atlanta: phone 404-659-0116

Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-3001; fax 202-225-5974
Boca Raton: phone 561-988-6302; fax 561-988-6423

Congresswoman Mazie Hirono (HI-2)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-4906; fax 202-225-4987
Honolulu: phone 808-541-1986

Congressman Tom Rooney (R-FL)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-5792; fax 202-225-3132
Punta Gorda: phone 941-575-9101; fax 941-575-9103

Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism & Homeland Security:

Congressman Bobby Scott (D-VA)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-8351; fax 202-225-8354
Richmond: phone 804-644-4845

Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-3072; fax 202-225-3336
San Jose: phone 408-271-8700

Congresswoman Shelia Jackson Lee (D-TX)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-3816; fax 202-225-3317
Houston: phone 713-691-4882

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-2201; fax 202-225-7854
Los Angeles: phone 323-757-8900

Congressman Steve Cohen (D-TN)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-3265; fax 202-225-5663
Memphis: phone 901-544-4131

Congressman Pedro Pierluisi (D-Page Ranking)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-2615; fax 202-225-2154
San Juan: phone 787-723-6333

Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-5431; fax 202-225-9681
Roanoke: phone 540-857-2672

Congressman Dan Lungren (R-CA)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-5716; fax 202-226-1298
Gold River: phone 916-859-9906

Congressman Louie Gohmert (R-TX)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-3035; fax 202-226-1230
Tyler: phone 903-561-6349

Congressman Ted Poe (R-TX)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-6565; fax 202-225-5547
Beaumont: phone 409-212-1997

Congressman Randy Forbes (R-VA)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-6365; fax 202-226-1170
Chesapeake: 757-382-0080; fax 757-382-0780

Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-5635
New York: phone 212-367-7350

Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-7931; fax 202-226-2052
Pembroke Pines: phone 954-437-3936; fax 954-437-4776

Congressman Anthony Weiner (D-NY)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-6616
Brooklyn: phone 718-743-0441

Congressman Mike Quigley (D-IL)
Washington DC: phone 202-225-4061; fax 202-225-5603
Chicago: phone 773-267-5926; fax 773-267-6583

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Leopard Gecko Care Guide

They just won't lay off it will they?

I'm surprised the Reticulated Python was not included in the list (where African Rocks and Burms were.)

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Only when the last tree has been cut down
Only after the last river has been poisoned
Only after the last fish has been caught
Only then will you find that money cannot be eaten.

Cree Indian Prophecy.

I'll be doing my part!!!! I thought America was "The land of the free" not the land of you can only do what you want if it does not disturb my delicate sensibilities, if it does, then I'll just complain until some idiot writes a frivolous bill hoping to enact it into an even more frivolous law!

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1.1 100% Het Pied Ball Python
2.2.1 Normal Ball Pythons
0.1 Blood Python (rescued)
1.0 Normal Burmese Python
0.1 Albino Burmese Python
1.2 Common Red-Tailed Boa
1.0 Creamsicle Corn Snake
0.1 Snow Corn Snake
0.1 BloodRed Corn Snake
0.1 Leucistic Texas Rat Snake
1.0 Phillipine Mangrove Snake
1.0 White-Lipped Python
1.0 Mali Uromastyx
0.1 Gray Tabby Cat
1.2 Mixed Breed Dogs

Herp Center is a USARK member so I will be posting these updates and legislative issues as they reach my inbox. When I get the upgrade underway we will have a section dedicated to this type of discussion.

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Leopard Gecko Care Guide

I'll call in. I don't know if a MA residents opinion matters. The animals can't live in the wild up here, but I'll voice my opposition to the bill any way.

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Have a great day, and a better tomorrow.
Semper fi

"It is just like man's vanity and impertinence to call an animal dumb, because it is dumb to his dull perceptions." ~ Mark Twain

This isn't just about Florida and the south. If it were I could understand it. This is an attempt to ban our ownership of these animals nationwide, even down to the smallest ball python!

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

No matter where you live. CALL! This is the only way we can stop this.

Thanks, Rich, I didn't know HC was in USARK now. I had been posting the emails when I got them, for others to know.

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I never knew this site had political affiliations.

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"What inning is it?" -What Joe Biden, Vice President of the United States, asked as he came in late to watch the super bowl

Greg

On November 6, 2009 USARK will have two expert witnesses testify Opposing HR2811 aka ‘The Python Ban’ before the US House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism & Homeland Security. Andrew Wyatt, President of USARK and Dr. Elliot Jacobson, DVM, PhD, and Professor of Zoological Medicine at University of Florida have been invited to give testimony.

USARK is Opposing HR2811 because we believe that the two US Geological Survey (USGS) reports that it is predicated on are flawed, and cannot justify the draconian measures of adding animals to the Injurious Wildlife List of the Lacey Act legislatively. This debate has become sensationalized by the media and is being politically driven by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), a radical leader of the Animal Rights Industry with a public position on ending the trade in reptiles here in the US. This is a case of ‘cherry picking science’ to support a political objective. USARK would encourage Congress to reconsider sacrificing sound policy for political expediency. We welcome a policy debate and are willing to put forward a national accreditation process for certain reptiles as an alternative to an all out ban.

Please Click the icon at the top of this page to follow USARK on Twitter for fast-breaking updates and results of the Hearing.

Click here for more information on the Hearing:
Hearing on: H.R. 2811, a bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to include constrictor snakes of the species Python genera as an injurious animal

Click here to watch Web-cast of hearing:
Legislative Calendar

Below is the USARK Press Release on the HR2811 Hearing:

For Immediate Release

Congress to Consider Python Ban; Noted Reptile Experts Question Science

November 6, 2009 Wilmington, [NC] - Today a U.S. House Subcommittee will consider H.R. 2811 a bill that could determine the fate of much of the reptile trade in the United States. Introduced by U.S. Representative Kendrick Meek (D-FL), who recently announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate, the bill could add the entire genus python to the Injurious Wildlife list of the Lacey Act; a designation reserved for only the most dangerous alien invaders to our natural ecosystem. Such a move would prevent all import, export, and interstate transport of pythons in the U.S. The scientific justification for such a move hinges on a recently published report of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) entitled ‘Risk Assessment of Nine Large Constricting Snakes’, which paints a picture of large constrictor snakes on the verge of taking over much of the U.S.

Proponents of H.R. 2811 including the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), are quick to suggest potential environmental harm from trade in large constrictor snakes, and have hailed the 300-page USGS report as “erasing any doubt.”

However, critics of a python ban maintain the science is simply not there to justify such a move. “H.R. 2811 aims to legislate science,” responded Andrew Wyatt, president of the United States Association of Reptile Keepers (USARK), a national trade association advocating responsible private ownership of, and trade in reptiles. “There exists a scientific process at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to make these types of determinations. For sake of expediency, or political gain, Congress appears intent on destroying a viable industry and forcing reptiles out of the homes of responsible owners,” added Wyatt. “The scientific basis for such an action is simply not there.”

Over the past 60 years, the practice of keeping reptiles has changed from an obscure hobby to an incredibly widespread and mainstream part of the American experience. With over 5 million Americans involved, and thousands of small businesses, the reptile trade in the U.S. is reported to represent 3 billion dollars annually.

Dr. Elliott Jacobson, Professor of Zoological Medicine at University of Florida, and a highly respected expert in reptile biology also remains unconvinced on the science. "Although the USGS Report is an attempt to assess the ability of large constrictor snakes to invade substantial areas of the US, it is an oversimplification of a very complicated topic,” said Dr. Jacobson. “The fact that the boa constrictor can be found in Mexico near the Arizona border, but has never entered the U.S. means there are factors operating that cannot be explained by this report."

H.R. 2811 will receive a hearing in the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism & Homeland Security, 2141 Rayburn House Office Building at 10:00 am.

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Leopard Gecko Care Guide

I overlooked this message. Sorry Greg.

HC is a member of USARK. If you are unaware of what USARK is, I tossed this together:

United States Association of Reptile Keepers

We aren't forcing anyone to join, nor are we pressing our affiliation with them. Herp Center purchased a membership to keep informed of what laws are being passed and what we can do to help prevent them. We then pass that information along to our users.

We want to keep everyone informed, which means we need to stay on top of things.

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Leopard Gecko Care Guide