On the recordJuly 7, 2015
I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I also thank the chairman for his comments. Mr. Chairman, I am proud to speak in support of Mr. Grijalva's amendment. The U.S. is the world's second largest market for ivory. Only China has a greater demand. In February of last year, President Obama announced a ban on the commercial trade of elephant ivory. This ban is the best way to ensure that U.S. markets do not contribute to the further decline of African elephants in the wild. The African elephant population has declined by an estimated 50 percent over the last 40 years, with approximately 35,000 elephants poached every year. That amounts to one elephant poached every 15 minutes. The Fish and Wildlife Service has been undertaking a series of administrative actions, including a proposed rule in order to implement the ban. Section 120 would prevent the Fish and Wildlife Service from implementing this rule and other policies necessary to crack down on the domestic illegal ivory market. I cannot understand why we would not do everything possible to stop the illegal slaughter of African elephants. I urge my colleagues to support Mr. Grijalva's amendment, which would prevent section 120 from being enacted. We must allow the FWS to continue its efforts to prevent the extinction of the African elephant.
