Govwatch

Introduced

2

In Committee

3

Passed One Chamber

4

Passed Both

5

Signed into Law

Sponsor

John Hoeven

Republican · ND · Senator

Votes with party: 77.0% (906 recorded votes)

Full profile: /officials/H001061

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

Cosponsors (18)

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 →

Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S5299; text: CR S5272)

2026-09-30

Source: Congress.gov

Plain-English Summary

Plain-English summary pending. Introduced on 2026-09-30. Check back soon — summaries are generated as bills progress through Congress.

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] [S. Res. 945 Agreed to Senate (ATS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. RES. 945 Designating November 7, 2026, as ``National Bison Day''. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES September 30, 2026 Mr. Hoeven (for himself, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Lujan, Ms. Warren, Mr. Hickenlooper, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Cramer, Mr. Marshall, Mr. Moran, Ms. Lummis, Mr. Coons, Mr. Booker, Mr. Rounds, Mr. Ricketts, Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Boozman, Ms. Smith, and Mrs. Hyde-Smith) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to _______________________________________________________________________ RESOLUTION Designating November 7, 2026, as ``National Bison Day''. Whereas, on May 9, 2016, the North American bison was adopted as the national mammal of the United States; Whereas bison are considered a historical and cultural symbol of the United States; Whereas bison are integrally linked with the economic and spiritual lives of many Indian Tribes through trade and sacred ceremonies; Whereas there are approximately 87 Indian Tribes participating in the InterTribal Buffalo Council, which is a Tribal organization incorporated pursuant to section 17 of the Act of June 18, 1934 (commonly known as the ``Indian Reorganization Act'') (48 Stat. 988, chapter 576; 25 U.S.C. 5124); Whereas numerous members of Indian Tribes are involved in bison restoration on Tribal land; Whereas members of Indian Tribes have a combined herd of almost 25,000 bison on more than 1,000,000 acres of Tribal land in 22 States; Whereas bison play an important role in the health of the wildlife, landscapes, and grasslands of the United States; Whereas bison hold significant economic value for private producers and Tribal and rural communities; Whereas, as of 2022, the Department of Agriculture estimates that 192,477 head of bison were under the stewardship of private producers, creating jobs and contributing to the food security of the United States by providing a sustainable and healthy meat source; Whereas a bison has been depicted on the official seal of the Department of the Interior since 1912; Whereas the Department of the Interior has launched the Bison Conservation Initiative, a 10-year cooperative initiative to coordinate the conservation and restoration of wild American bison; Whereas a bison is portrayed on 2 State flags; Whereas the bison has been adopted by 3 States as the official mammal or animal of those States; Whereas the buffalo nickel played an important role in modernizing the currency of the United States; Whereas several sports teams and businesses have the bison as a mascot, which highlights the iconic and cultural significance of bison in the United States; Whereas Indigenous communities and a group of ranchers helped save bison from extinction in the late 1800s by gathering the remaining bison of the diminished herds; Whereas, on December 8, 1905, William Hornaday, Theodore Roosevelt, and others formed the American Bison Society in response to the near extinction of bison in the United States; Whereas, on October 11, 1907, the American Bison Society sent 15 captive-bred bison from the New York Zoological Park, now known as the ``Bronx Zoo'', to the first big game refuge in the United States, now known as the ``Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge''; Whereas, in 2005, the American Bison Society was reestablished, bringing together bison ranchers, Native American leaders and bison herd managers, Federal and State agencies, conservation organizations, artists, writers, young people, and natural and social scientists from the United States, Canada, and Mexico to create a vision for the North American bison in the 21st century; Whereas there are bison herds in national wildlife refuges, national parks, national forests, and other Federal land; Whereas there are bison in…

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State-managed herds across 11 States; Whereas private, public, and Tribal bison leaders are working together to continue bison restoration throughout North America; Whereas there is a growing effort to celebrate and officially recognize the historical, cultural, and economic significance of the North American bison to the heritage of the United States; and Whereas members of Indian Tribes, bison producers, conservationists, sportsmen, educators, and other public and private partners have celebrated the annual National Bison Day since 2012 and are committed to continuing this tradition annually on the first Saturday of November: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate-- (1) designates November 7, 2026, the first Saturday of November, as ``National Bison Day''; and (2) encourages the people of the United States to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities. <all>

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A resolution designating November 7, 2026, as "National Bison Day".