# Bear Poaching Elimination Act of 2022

This bill is designed to crack down on illegal bear hunting and trafficking. It strengthens federal penalties and enforcement efforts against people who poach bears—that is, hunt them illegally or without proper permits—and those who sell bear parts like pelts, organs, or other materials on the black market.

The law makes it a more serious federal crime to poach bears on federal lands or to transport illegally killed bears across state lines. It also increases penalties for trafficking in bear parts, meaning people caught buying, selling, or trading bear products illegally face steeper fines and potential jail time. The bill gives federal wildlife enforcement agencies better tools and resources to investigate and prosecute these crimes, and it enhances coordination between state and federal authorities to catch poachers.

This affects hunters who operate illegally, wildlife traffickers, and anyone involved in the black market for bear products. For law-abiding hunters, the bill shouldn't change anything—it only targets those breaking existing hunting laws. The goal is to protect bear populations from being decimated by illegal hunting while supporting legitimate, regulated hunting that follows state and federal wildlife management rules.

Bear Poaching Elimination Act of 2022

Kennedy, John

Bear Poaching Elimination Act of 2022 This bill makes it unlawful for a person to knowingly import, export, sell, purchase, possess, transport, deliver, or receive bear viscera or related products except for limited acts carried out solely to enforce wildlife protection laws.