Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I understand that people are concerned with HR2811, as I am. Why is it though that people posting all Pythons and Boas are on the chopping block? When in reality it is only Burms and Rocks? I was just wondering?

People posting lately are acting like the media, it is sad. I expected that we wouldnt lower ourselves as an industry to this false information.

Because they'll start with the big snakes and then work their way down to small snakes. We can't give up our rights to own any snake.

Because although an amended version was approved by the Judiciary Committee on July 29, the amended version is nowhere to be found in the congressional records. The bill has mysteriously moved backwards from the full committee markup that was voted for and approved, to a sub-committee potentially considering the original text. The USGS released a report in October naming Boa Constrictors in the high risk category and the humane society is expected to leverage that report to ask for a broader bill than just pythons in Friday's meeting (it was re-scheduled for Friday). Here is the list of the panel who will answer questions of the representatives... How many of those witnesses do you think will be lobbying for your ball pythons???

Witness List

Panel I

Hon. Kendrick B. Meek
U.S. House of Representatives
17th District, FL

Panel II

Dan Ashe
Deputy Director
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Washington, DC

Andrew Wyatt
President
United States Association of Reptile Keepers
Grandy, NC

Elliott R. Jacobson, DVM
College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL

Michael Markarian
Chief Operating Officer
The Humane Society of the U.S.
Washington, DC

George Horne
Deputy Executive Director, Operations and Maintenance
South Florida Water Management District, MSC 5100
West Palm Beach, FL

I was unaware that the Bill Took a Step Back. Everything I have read states that bill was narrowed to just burms and retics. Also USARK was unsuccessful in limited the scope further to importation. I watched the Hearing and saw them vote it to just Burms and Retics. I guess I was watching the wrong hearing.

I copied this from the reptile channel. Unless things have changed since the 26th, it explains the situation well.

H.R. 2811 Python and Boa Ban
New python and boa ban hearing scheduled for Nov. 5, 2009.October 26, 2009

By Andrew Wyatt

On Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009, H.R. 2811 aka “The Python Ban” will go to hearing before the U.S. House Judiciary Committees’ Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, chaired by Congressman Bobby Scott (D-VA). As originally written, H.R. 2811 would have banned the import, export and interstate transport of the entire genus python by adding them to the Injurious Wildlife List of the Lacey Act. The current form of the bill has been amended to include only the Burmese python and the Northern African python. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is lobbying to expand the animals included to list all of the snakes in the United States Geologic Survey (USGS) risk assessment of nine large constricting snakes that includes Boa constrictor.

In late July the United States Association of Reptile Keepers (USARK) was successful in removing most pythons from H.R. 2811 when Congressman Rooney (R-FL) offered an amendment that left only the Northern African python and the Burmese python on the bill. In addition, the bill sponsors and committee staff agreed in principle to further limit the scope of H.R. 2811 to only the importation of these snakes. It would still allow the captive bred trade to continue. To date that promise has not been kept.

On Oct. 13, the USGS released a risk assessment of nine large constricting snakes including the reticulated python, Northern African python, Southern African python, Burmese python, green anaconda, yellow anaconda, Deschauensee’s anaconda, Beni anaconda and boa constrictor. The African pythons, Burmese python and boa constrictor were all rated as high risk for invasiveness in the U.S.

The new USGS study is not without controversy. The authors of the study were the administrators of the 20-year failed program to eradicate the brown treesnake from Guam that cost taxpayers more than $100 million. They stonewalled a congressional inquiry and request for a formal briefing on the study filed in August. Nevertheless, HSUS is trying to use the study as impetus to amend H.R. 2811 to include all of the snakes in the study. If this were to happen, and the bill were to pass, approximately 25 percent of the Reptile Nation would be destroyed overnight leaving more than 2 million animals in limbo and reducing their economic value to $0, bankrupting thousands of hard working American family businesses.

Please do not let this happen. Contact your U.S. Congress representative and oppose H.R. 2811. Please get on the USARK mailing list and stay tuned for instructions on how to fight this bill from the grass roots level.

Andrew Wyatt is the President of the United States Association of Reptile Keepers (USARK) and has been an avid herp enthusiast for more than 35 years. He has traveled the world and has had his animals featured in a number of television productions. For more information about USARK, click here .

So once again the HR2811 is still amended to stricly Burms and Retics. The hearing for this week is for a further amendment that would only inlcude large Pythons that exceed ten feet such as Burms, Retics and Rocks, also included would be Boas and Andacondas.

You don't know how much I hope you are right. I have been searching the congressional records and I can find multiple links to the bill in its original form, none in it's amended form.
Paul

Websites for the most part are never up to date. Half the sites I browse thorugh have never been updated. With the media focusing on HealthCare Reform other things they hopefully just neglected to update the site.

The bill as originally written included all snakes of the genus Python. If USARK was able to get them to ammend it, do you think that this is the last we will hear of this? I for one, knowing our government, will never go down without a fight. I don`t think you CAN be "too" paranoid when it comes to our government.

The US Fish and Wildlife representative asked them to include the nine largest constrictors in a new amendment. It was not propaganda.
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Jeff Ronne Sr
The Boaphile
Director USARK

Originator of Boaphile Plastics
The Boaphile Boa Site

One other thing I think people do not understand. There is no final bill till it passes the House. They can make any amendment they wish in any direction they wish, and this without regard for what they have agreed to previously or assured you would be in or not in any bill. This is politics. We as Herpers, now of necessity turned activists, can only hope to have some measure of influence in the ultimate direction or final language of this or any other bill. The louder our collective voice, the greater that influence. Let's all spend your energies fighting the bad guys not tearing at each other. Please.
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Jeff Ronne Sr
The Boaphile
Director USARK

Originator of Boaphile Plastics
The Boaphile Boa Site