ALERT: Vermont slider ban
The Vermont legislature amended a bill just before passage. The amendment added Trachemys scripta as a prohibited species. Anyone who owned the turtles prior to July 1, 2025, may keep their animals. Per the amendment, a “person shall not import, possess, or sell...
ALERT: Lincoln County, NC
UPDATE 1/5/26: The Commissioners again denied public comment and passed the ordinance with a 3-1 vote. The dissenting vote occurred because he felt that there should be no grandfathering of currently owned animals (meaning they should be seized or killed). There is a...ALERT: Federal Herp and Fish Regulations
Representative Betty McCollum (MN) has reintroduced a bill titled “To amend the Animal Welfare Act to include cold-blooded species as animals, and for other purposes.” McCollum introduced this at the end of the last session (died with session adjournment), and it is...ALERT: New Palestine, IN
UPDATE 8/20/25: The ordinance passed tonight on second reading. Thank you again to all who joined USARK to educate the Council on the implications of the original draft and helped make this ordinance better. UPDATE 8/6/25: The Town Council voted, and the latest...2025 CITES Standing Meeting recap
USARK Counsel, David A. Garcia, attended the 78th meeting of the CITES Standing Committee, the final meeting before the 20th Conference of the Parties (CoP), which will take place from November 24 to December 5, 2025, in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Key topics at the...Become A member
