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H.R. 1438: Refuge From Cruel Trapping Act

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H.R. 1438: Refuge From Cruel Trapping Act

115th Congress · introduced 2017-03-08 · Public Lands and Natural Resources · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Federal Lands.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2017-03-08 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Lowey, Nita M. [D-NY-17] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Federal Lands. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Refuge From Cruel Trapping Act

Plain summary

Refuge From Cruel Trapping Act This bill amends the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 to prohibit the use or possession of body-gripping traps in the National Wildlife Refuge System. The bill imposes on persons who possess or use such traps in the System: (1) for a first offense, a civil fine of up to $500 for each body-gripping trap possessed or used; and (2) for subsequent offenses, a civil fine of up to $1,000 for each body-gripping trap possessed or used, imprisonment for up to 180 days, or both such a civil fine and imprisonment. The bill makes any body-gripping traps that are possessed or used in violation of this bill, and any wildlife captured by the use of such traps, including the pelts and raw fur, subject to civil forfeiture. Persons found to be in violation of such prohibition shall pay all associated court costs.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Refuge From Cruel Trapping Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Lowey, Nita M. [D-NY-17] · 93 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Ro Khanna (D-CA), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Pete Aguilar (D-CA), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Judy Chu (D-CA), Adam B. Schiff (D-CA), Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), Hakeem S. Jeffries (D-NY), Doris O. Matsui (D-CA), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Janice D. Schakowsky (D-IL), Rick Larsen (D-WA), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Brendan F. Boyle (D-PA), Donald S. Beyer, Jr. (D-VA), William R. Keating (D-MA), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Katherine M. Clark (D-MA), Adam Smith (D-WA), Bill Foster (D-IL), Dina Titus (D-NV), Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Alma S. Adams (D-NC), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Kathy Castor (D-FL) and 33 more.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)
Bill
A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong115-hr1438 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115