NARBC St. Louis! Daytona auction record and FL lawsuit update.

NARBC is back!

We may have missed March but the big show is back and it is happening this weekend… in St. Louis! NARBC is making it happen for its loyal vendors and attendees. It does not matter that this is the first NARBC in St. Louis. This show has been rockin’ for twenty years now and they know how to do it right. As always, huge thanks to Bob, Brian, Kristin, and the NARBC crew for their continued USARK support!

If you are attending, please read the venue and show safeguards in the next section of this newsletter.

The Saturday night auction is on, too! Please note that there will be adult content at the auction. This event supports good causes by raising money to protect and help responsible herpers and herp conservation, but the event is most definitely rated R. Come support your herp community. A good time is always had by all! Do not miss it!

As usual, we will have some INCREDIBLE donations! Gamini and Lisa from Hidden Forest Art Gallery have once again stepped up. Take a peek at the bottom of this newsletter to see the two original paintings they have donated. This and so much more will be awaiting you at the auction! Here is an early THANK YOU to all donors and bidders! USARK would not be possible without your contributions.

If you are headed to the show, be sure to practice common-sense personal hygiene practices. Protect yourself, your family, and others. Please review this information from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC): www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/prevention.html

Get all NARBC show details at www.narbc.com/StLouis/stlouis.html.

NOTE: In order to attend the auction, you must purchase tickets at the USARK booth. Only auction donors and USARK volunteers receive free auction tickets. See our booth for details. VIP badge holders must also purchase tickets.

   Show Schedule:

   Friday: Setup and VIP
   Saturday, Sept. 5: 10:00-5:00 (VIP at 7:30 AM)
   Auction: 6:00 PM Saturday (preview open ASAP after the show)
   Sunday, Sept. 6: 11:00-4:00 (VIP at 10:00 AM)

Location:
Saint Charles Convention Center
1 Convention Center Plaza
St. Charles, MO 63303

READ THIS if you are going to NARBC St. Louis!

From NARBC:

• All Vendors and Attendees are required to wear a face-covering during the entire event. A limited number of disposable masks will be available for purchase at check-in. We recommend you bring your own mask to the show. NOTE: USARK will have washable, reusable 3-layer cotton face masks for sale, too!
• All vendors are strongly encouraged to offer hand sanitizer to customers during the show.
• The City of St. Charles will have hand sanitizing stations throughout the facility.
• If you feel unwell or have recently tested positive for Covid-19 please stay home.
• For your safety, the St Charles Convention Center now has a ‘Clear Bag Policy.’ During show hours all purses must be clear. All non-clear bags are subject to search.

New Auction Record at Daytona NRBE

​It was a great night! It was a good day for the return of the big reptile shows and the support for USARK was also impressive. Last year set a new record for this show at $53,000. Well, this year we surpassed that… by a bit. The community came together and raised $69,560 for USARK and USARK FL! Thank you to everyone who donated and bid!

USARK FL Lawsuit Update

LAWSUIT UPDATE: The hearing regarding our motion for summary judgment motion has been rescheduled for Thursday, September 3 at 1:30 pm EST. Details about the lawsuit can still be found at www.usarkfl.org/lawsuit-newsletter-1.

​ALERT: Wildlife-Borne Disease Prevention Act (Federal)

UPDATE (with original alert below): The HEROES Act squeaked thought the House with a vote of 208 – 199. While it is expected that the Act will not be supported by the Senate, we all must be aware of what is happening in the current political climate.
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Buried on pages 1,628-1,635 of the latest 1,815-page House democratic draft of a COVID-19 relief bill known as the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act (HEROES Act) is the text of the Wildlife-Borne Disease Prevention Act (the Act). In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and utilizing this crisis as a springboard, the Act has surfaced as activists try to conflate the issue of legal and legitimate trade with substandard wet markets and other unregulated potential vectors for zoonotic disease transmission.

Most troubling of all, the Act contains language that would reverse the USARK federal lawsuit victory by reinstating the ban on interstate transportation of species listed as injurious under the Lacey Act. In that landmark decision, four federal judges agreed that USARK was correct and that the Lacey Act did not ban interstate transportation of injurious species based on the original language of the Lacey Act and the intent of Congress. As a result of this fight for our members and the herpetocultural community, this meant animals domestically bred under human care could be moved and sold across state lines (within the continental United States). For herpetoculturists’ concerns, this included a few species of constrictors snakes and a long list of salamanders. However, that ruling was made on the current Lacey Act language.

Unfortunately, the proposed law now included in the COVID relief bill would overturn that decision. Specifically, the Act would add this language to the Lacey Act (Title 18 Section 42): “or any interstate transport between States within the continental United States.”

Not only will it ban interstate transportation, but it will expand what is considered an injurious species. In addition to the above amendment, it alters the definition of an injurious species: “to be injurious to or to transmit a pathogen that can cause disease in humans…”

The Act has some other consequences:

1. Creates a new route to petition for listing injurious species (with 90 days for the government to respond);
2. Requires a list of species “that could pose a biohazard risk to human health” be compiled by the government and determine if those species may be injurious. The list is to be finalized within one year after passage of the Act;
3. Creates a new electronic permitting system;
4. Creates new monitoring, research, management, and database frameworks (Wildlife Disease Surveillance through the United States Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Health Center).

While we do not believe that the HEROES Act as passed by the House will be supported by the Senate, we do have reasonable concerns that the language on the wildlife trade will find its way into a subsequent bill that could pass the Congress.

For this reason, we are alerting our membership and other animal interests to this threat while working to prevent the inclusion of the Act into a Senate bill. We are engaged, as always, and will keep the community apprised. If action is needed from membership, we will issue an alert and steps to take.

We hope everyone is safe and healthy during this time. Be responsible! Protect your health and the health of others. Always represent herpetoculture in a professional manner.

Read this online at www.usark.org/2020-disease-prevention-act.

You can find the full HEROES Act at this link. See page 1,628 for the Wildlife-Borne Disease Prevention Act: https://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20200511/BILLS-116hr6800ih.pdf.

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