HR8471Referred to Committee

PRIMATE Act

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Introduced
In Committee
3
Passed One Chamber
4
Passed Both
5
Signed into Law
119th
Congress
2026-04-23
Introduced
6
Cosponsors
HR
ⓘ
Type

Sponsor

W. Gregory Steube
W. Gregory Steube
Republican · FL · Representative
Votes with party: 90.5% (587 recorded votes)

Full profile: /officials/S001214

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

Cosponsors (6)

Members who have signed on to support this bill since introduction. Source: Congress.gov.

Latest Action

The most recent step in the bill's legislative path. Committee Activity below shows referrals and reports; the full action-by-action history including floor proceedings lives at Congress.gov →

Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

2026-04-23

Source: Congress.gov

Committee Activity

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Plain-English Summary

The proposal would ban the importation of nonhuman primates (like monkeys and apes) into the United States, preventing companies and research facilities from bringing these animals into the country. This would affect zoos, medical research institutions, and pet importers who currently rely on obtaining primates from other countries. The measure is intended to restrict the trade in these animals, though it has been referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means for further consideration.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

Subjects

Foreign Trade and International Finance

Full Bill Text

Verbatim text published on Congress.gov via GovInfo. Use Cmd+F / Ctrl+F to search within this excerpt.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 8471 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 8471 To amend the Tariff Act of 1930 to prohibit the importation on nonhuman primates. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES April 23, 2026 Mr. Steube (for himself, Ms. Titus, Ms. Malliotakis, and Mr. Carson) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend the Tariff Act of 1930 to prohibit the importation on nonhuman primates. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Preventing Risky Importation of Monkeys to Avoid Toxic Exposures Act'' or the ``PRIMATE Act''. SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON IMPORTATION OF NONHUMAN PRIMATES. Title III of the Tariff Act of 1930 is amended by inserting after section 308 (19 U.S.C. 1308) the following: ``SEC. 308A. PROHIBITION ON IMPORTATION OF NONHUMAN PRIMATES. ``(a) Definitions.--In this section-- ``(1) the term `AZA-accredited facility' means a facility accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA); ``(2) the term `nonhuman primate' means any live member of the taxonomic order Primates other than Homo sapiens; ``(3) the term `person' includes any individual, partnership, corporation, association, organization, business trust, government entity, or other entity subject to the jurisdiction of the United States; ``(4) the term `Secretary' means the Secretary of the Treasury; and ``(5) the term `United States' means the customs territory of the United States, as defined in general note 2 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States. ``(b) Prohibition.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and except as provided in subsection (c), it shall be unlawful for any person to import into the United States any nonhuman primate. ``(c) Exception.--This section shall not apply to the importation of a nonhuman primate-- ``(1) by, and for placement with, an AZA-accredited facility; and ``(2) with respect to which the importer certifies that the nonhuman primate will not be transferred, sold, leased, or otherwise provided for use in experiments or testing, or for breeding for use in experiments or testing. ``(d) Enforcement.--U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall deny clearance for any shipment for importation into the United States containing a nonhuman primate as prohibited by subsection (b). ``(e) Penalties.-- ``(1) Civil penalties.--Any person who violates any provision of this section or any regulation issued under this section may, in addition to any other civil or criminal penalty that may be imposed under title 18, United States Code, or any other provision of law, be assessed a civil penalty by the Secretary of not more than $50,000 for each violation of this section. ``(2) Forfeiture.--Any nonhuman primate imported into the United States contrary to the provisions of this section or any regulation issued under this section shall be subject to forfeiture to the United States. ``(f) Regulations.--Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall, after notice and opportunity for comment, issue regulations to carry out the provisions of this section.''. <all>
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