Proposed federal legislation that would bar private ownership of large exotic cats has met mixed reactions from members of Arkansas’ U.S. House delegation, but wildlife advocates are optimistic it will make its way to the president’s desk.
The Big Cat Public Safety Act — H.R. 263 — was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on July 29 by a vote of 278 to 134 and now moves to the Senate.
H.R. 263 would prohibit private ownership and public handling of large, exotic cats—specifically the species of lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, cougars, or any hybrid of such species, according to the text of the legislation. The bill also restricts direct contact between the public and big cats, like cub petting.
The bill, introduced to the House on Jan. 11, 2021 and sponsored by Rep. Michael Quigley, D-Ill., has received bipartisan support in the House. It was cosponsored by 258 lawmakers — 206 Democrats and 52 Republicans.
Arkansas’ all-Republican delegation in the House was split on H.R. 263, with Reps. Steve Womack and French Hill voting in favor of the bill and Reps. Bruce Westerman and Rick Crawford voting against it.
Womack, a Rogers resident and one of the original cosponsors of H.R. 263, commended Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs — a nonprofit organization that provides refuge for mistreated big cats — for the work they conduct to “care for animals in the Third District each day.”
Womack said in a July 29 news release: “With an emphasis on conservation and animal safety, this legislation will help further their mission to protect wildlife. I was proud to support this local priority by helping introduce and pass this bipartisan bill.”
Hill, of Little Rock, also cosponsored the bill. In a statement Thursday, Hill said, “After hearing from local leaders in our community, including animal-care organizations and the Arkansas Sheriff’s Association, I was pleased to cosponsor the Big Cat Public Safety Act.
“Big cats in captivity jeopardize public safety, with hundreds of dangerous encounters since 1990. This legislation will work to keep both big cats and our communities safer.”
Westerman, of Hot Springs, contended that there were more important issues facing the country.
In a July 29 news release, Westerman said: "Big cats should not take precedence over lowering energy costs, securing our southern border, correcting skyrocketing inflation, or addressing any other of the actual crises facing Americans right now.”
“I guarantee that my constituents are more concerned with how to fill up their gas tanks and pay for groceries this month than they are with cats and kittens,” the release said.
Westerman also said H.R. 263 was “grossly overreaching, creating yet another regulatory framework and stripping away states' rights. We could accomplish these exact same goals while just working within our existing authorities, not creating new and duplicative ones."
According to a news release from Animal Wellness Action, Westerman suggested that the “Department of Agriculture should handle the problem.”
When asked about this statement, Rebekah Hoshiko, communications director for Westerman said on Friday, the “USDA [U.S. Department of Agriculture] already has jurisdiction over big cats. Creating a separate agency under DOI [Department of the Interior] would be duplicative. Creating two regulatory frameworks at two different departments — DOI and USDA — overlaid with existing state regulation will only create confusion and duplication.”
The news release from Westerman's communications team stated H.R. 263 would “dramatically change” existing authorities such as the Lacey Act of 1900 which bans trafficking in fish, wildlife, or plants that are illegally taken, possessed, transported, or sold, and the Animal Welfare Act of 1966 which “regulates the treatment of animals in research and exhibition pursuant.”
“The USDA already has inspectors and law enforcement officers in place that are experts in animal welfare issues. This bill ignores the existing framework and creates an additional regulatory system,” according to the release.
Cheryl King, marketing director for Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, said if the law passes and a person already owns a big cat, that doesn’t mean the animal will be taken away.
“You will, however, be required to maintain proper habitat for it, proper care, which includes veterinarian care,” King said.
“There are many states right now that don't provide any oversight in those areas. You could have a tiger in your backyard and as long as you're not publicly showing that animal, nobody is coming in and watching it.”
According to King and bigcatrescue.org, Alabama, Nevada, North Carolina, and Wisconsin don’t have any laws on keeping wild animals as pets.
Arkansas does have a law in place that prohibits the ownership and possession of certain large carnivores.
Arkansas Act 2226 was signed into law in April 2005 by then-Gov. Mike Huckabee. King said a direct ban was put in place on ownership of large carnivores such as African lions, tigers, hybrids, and bears after Aug. 12, 2005. According to Act 2226, large carnivores are required to have liability insurance “in an amount of not less than $100,000” and have signs at entrances onto the “premises where a large carnivore is kept.”
This law came after there were incidents where big cats were set loose in the state.
Four 600 to 800-pound African lions were hunted and killed in Quitman after they were found running loose in 2002. In January 2005, a man released a 400-pound tiger in the forests near the Buffalo River. The tiger found its way to the owner’s home over the next four days and was taken to a refuge in Eureka Springs.
King said the problem with Act 2226 is the law doesn’t “necessarily prohibit ownership of cougars and bobcats.” However, H.R. 263 would include those species.
While some laws regulate owning a big cat, King said there are “loopholes.”
According to King, the Captive Wildlife Safety Act, passed in 2003 was supposed to prohibit moving animals from different states.
“We can tell you that that has not been adhered to,” King said.
“There was a facility in Florida, Dade City's Wild Things, and there were five tigers. The facility was found by the USDA to have violations and they were cited with endangering their animals and improper care. And ultimately, two of those Tigers were awarded to Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge and the facility was forced to relinquish them.”
According to a release from Animal Wellness Action, H.R. 263 builds on the Captive Wildlife Safety Act.
“The original measure had a drafting flaw, and the Big Cat Public Safety Act seeks to correct that problem,” the release stated.
This is the second time the Big Cat Public Safety Act has been introduced to the House of Representatives. In the 116th Congressional Session, King said the House passed a related bill but there was not enough time in the session to get it through the Senate.
“The likelihood is that we will not get this bill back in if it doesn't pass in the 117th Congressional Session. So it's very important that we get all of the cosponsors and backers that we can across all of the states and of course, having our Arkansas legal representative support this bill helps at the national level to get all states on board to pass it.”
King said she believes the bill has bipartisan support in the U.S. Senate.
“We have gotten feedback that if the Senate will bring it to a vote, it should pass unanimously and the president has already indicated that if the Senate will pass it, he will sign it into law. So yes, I think there's a very good possibility that that could happen.”
King said that while she thinks the Big Cat Public Safety Act wouldn’t have an immediate impact in Arkansas because the state already has legislation in place on large carnivores, it’s still vital for the nation.
“Some states don't have any laws at all. So I feel that it's very important, one for the safety of people, but also for the animals themselves, so many animals come into our care that have been discarded after they're no longer useful in the cub petting industry and it's just very cruel what these animals go through.”