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To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the transport, purchase, and sale of pelts of, and handicrafts, garments, and art produced from, Southcentral and Southeast Alaska northern sea otters that are taken for subsistence purposes.
To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the transport, purchase, and sale of pelts of, and handicrafts, garments, and art produced from, Southcentral and Southeast Alaska northern sea otters that are taken for subsistence purposes.
Summary
This bill amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the transport, purchase, and sale of pelts from northern sea otters in Southcentral and Southeast Alaska that are taken for subsistence purposes. It also permits the transport, purchase, sale, and export of handicrafts, garments, and art made from these sea otter pelts, regardless of whether the products are traditional or contemporary in style. Currently, the Marine Mammal Protection Act generally prohibits such commerce in marine mammal pelts and products. The bill creates a specific exemption for this subsistence-taken sea otter pelt commerce in the specified Alaska regions.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
Money behind the sponsor
Top reported contributors to Nicholas J. Begich’s campaign committee (2024 cycle) — who funds the bill’s sponsor, not a claim about this bill. Data from FEC.
- NULL $310,813
- TEAMHEALTH EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS $44,901
- PETRO 49, INC $18,931
- ODOM CORP $12,500
- CHARLES SCHWAB CORPORATION $9,183
Organizations whose employees gave the most — itemized individual contributions grouped by the donor’s reported employer (FEC Schedule A). Full finance for Nicholas J. Begich → · Outside spending →
Actions (4)
- Jun 3, 2026 Subcommittee Hearings Held · house
- May 29, 2026 Referred to the Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries. · house
- Apr 21, 2026 Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources. · house
- Apr 21, 2026 Introduced in House
More bills on these subjects (8)
Other bills that carry the most legislative subjects in common with this one (topical discovery — distinct from the procedural related bills above).
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Committee action
What happened to this bill in committee — the meetings where it was considered and every recorded vote taken on it.
Meetings where this bill was on the agenda
Full text
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 21, 2026
Mr. Begich introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
A BILL
To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the transport, purchase, and sale of pelts of, and handicrafts, garments, and art produced from, Southcentral and Southeast Alaska northern sea otters that are taken for subsistence purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. TRANSPORT, PURCHASE, AND SALE OF PELTS OF, AND HANDICRAFTS, GARMENTS, AND ART PRODUCED FROM SOUTHCENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST ALASKA NORTHERN SEA OTTERS TAKEN FOR SUBSISTENCE PURPOSES.
Section 102 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1372) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(g) Sea Otter Pelts and Products.—Nothing in this Act prohibits—
“(1) the transport, purchase, sale of, or any offer to purchase or sell, any pelt of an otter from the Southcentral or Southeast Alaska stock of northern sea otters that is taken for subsistence purposes in accordance with section 101(b)(1); or
“(2) the transport, purchase, sale, export of, or any offer to purchase, sell or export, any handicraft, garment, or art that is produced from the pelt of the Southcentral or Southeast Alaska stock of northern sea otters that is taken for subsistence purposes in accordance with section 101(b)(1), regardless of whether the handicraft, garment, or art—
“(A) is traditional or contemporary; or
“(B) is or is not altered significantly.”. <all>
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