The Lacey Act

I guess I'm a tad bit surprised that being that you opened a reptile shipping business you didn't consult a lawyer about it?

I was in contact with F&W a few months ago about it. I'll post their response along with the documentation they provided if I have time when I get home (yeah, yeah...said that the other day... ).

Not looking to get in a peeing match on this, I just disagree that it is "extremely explicit" in any way.

We HAVE consulted lawyers, legal folks, with degrees and everything, and so far they feel it is just as vague as I do.

When has it been enforced or clarified in the world of reptiles? I can't use anecdotal evidence, I need actual evidence, that would be terrific.

The Lacey Act itself makes no specific labeling instruction. There is a Part 300 of the International Fisheries regulations that specifies species labeling (for trout, salmon and what have you), to meet the needs of the Lacey Act, but that is referring BACK to the Lacey Act, the Lacey Act is not referring to that.

I have received an email that says the Lacey Act is very specific about requirements, requiring scientific and common names be labeled, and yet in the actual legal verbiage copied three inches down, there is no mention of scientific names at all. The discrepencies are all over the place, and many online experts in the Lacey Act offer very different takes. What is NOT legally prudent is to take legal advice from on an online forum alone. I started a Lacey Act thread to see if others were as twisted around as I was, to see if there was some consensus, which I still do not see.

I can understand folks want to comply with the Lacey Act, whatever it requires, and they are welcome to do so. ShipYourReptiles is a site and service that facilitates safe packing and shipping of reptiles, we are not a legislative site, we don't provide legal aid, or legal opinions on such things.

The only thing I can add to the FAQ would be something like:

If you are to comply with the Lacey Act (and/or Part 300 of the International Fisheries regulations) label your box with quantity and common name by species.

We are still deciding what exact verbiage to ad, but that sounds pretty close, unless we are legally advised otherwise, and I will update the site when that happens. Does the Lacey Act specifically apply to reptiles and the reptile hobby? Not sure. Does the fact that someone on an online forum insists that their legal interpretation is accurate make it so? No, not really.

Regardless, what I do with labeling of my reptile shipments, what HE does with his shipments, and what THEY do with theirs does not affect YOUR ability to label your packages however you choose to. No one is restricting you from labeling your packages as you see fit. I don't suggest you mis-label them, I don't suggest you deceive anyone. I'll suggest this: Consult your own attorney : )

Labeling in accordance to the Lacey Act is an individual responsibility, it is not MY repsonsiblity, and it would reckless of me to legally advise others on a subject that I do not definitive knowledge of.

TME, feel free to post your communication from Fish and Wildlife, that would also be great to see. I am not afraid of the answer/clarification, whatever it may be, but taking an argumentative opinion from an online forum is just not definitive enough, yet : )

In the meantime, the shipping process at SYR has been very smooth sailing, and we are getting terrific feedback, aside from 1% Lacey Act confusion, which I have spent 30% of my day addressing : )

Found some of it (and the baby's still sleeping)!

Originally Posted by Me

Email submitted from Contact Us form received: 9/17/2008 07:50:00 MT
Message ID: 70931928-19B9-E4C8-9479662C662E6BD3

From: info@triplemoonsexotic.com
First Name: Stephanie
Last Name:
State: PA
Country: US

Good morning,

I had a question regarding the Federal Lacey Act (http://www.fws.gov/le/pdffiles/Lacey.pdf). I ship Live Harmless Reptiles and wanted clarification on labeling packages. Currently I label my packages with the quantity, scientific name, common name and "LIVE HARMLESS REPTILES." An argument has been made that the Lacey Act just states "in accordance with existing commercial practices" as opposed to specifying what exactly is required...So one would not have to be specific but just label "Live Harmless Reptiles," "Snakes," or just the scientific name. Is this an accurate interpretation of the Lacey Act, or are we reptile shippers better off labeling with as much information as possible (as I already do) to cover ourselves?

Thank you for your time, I look forward to hearing from you.

Originally Posted by F&W

Dear Stephanie,

Thank you for your inquiry regarding the regulations involving marking requirements for the shipments of fish and wildlife. Our mission is, working with others, to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people.

We apologize for the tardiness of this response.

50 CFR 14.81 of the Code of Federal Regulations sets out marking requirements as noted below:

“Except as otherwise provided in this subpart, no person may import, export, or transport in interstate commerce any container or package containing any fish or wildlife (including shellfish and fishery products) unless he/she marks each container or package conspicuously on the outside with both the name and address of the shipper and consignee. An accurate and legible list of its contents by species scientific name and the number of each species and whether or not the listed species are venomous must accompany the entire shipment.”

The Federal statute and regulations dealing with marking requirements (including some exceptions listed in 50 CFR 14.82) can be found at http://www.gpoaccess.gov.

To more fully answer your questions about a specific international shipment, contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Port of Entry where you plan to import/export your shipment. This will also give you an opportunity to ask any additional questions about wildlife shipments and understand the applicable regulations.

We provide a link to our Ports of Entry: http://www.fws.gov/le/ImpExp/Contact_Info_Ports.htm

Additionally, the State(s) where you plan ship items within the United States may have some prohibitions which differ from Federal law. You should contact your State wildlife agency to enquire about any State prohibitions. Contact information for State wildlife agencies can be found on our website at: http://offices.fws.gov/statelinks.html.

Thank you for your cooperation in complying with our regulations that help protect fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats. Please feel free to respond to this message with any further inquiries that you may have regarding this matter.

Originally Posted by Me

Thank you for the response, but my question wasn't answered.

I attempted to run a search on gpoaccess.gov for additional details on
labeling, but the search function appears to be behind with the times
and does not work properly (instead of searching for all of the keywords
entered, it searches for them individually).

The parts of 50 CFR 14.81 that you included need clarified:

This is not in reference to international shipments, but about shipments
made in the United States.

Thank you, I look forward to your response.

Originally Posted by F&W

Dear Stephanie,

Thank you for your follow-up inquiry.

Please find attached the most recent version of 50 CFR Part 14 (10/2008) for your reference.

If you look at 50 CFR 14.82, we believe this will answer your questions. Here is 14.82 noted below.
(a) The requirements of §14.81 may be met by complying with one of the following alternatives to the marking requirement:

(1)(i) Conspicuously marking the outside of each container or package containing fish or wildlife with the word “fish” or “wildlife” as appropriate for its contents, or with the common name of its contents by species, and

(ii) Including an invoice, packing list, bill of lading, or similar document to accompany the shipment which accurately states the name and address of the shipper and consignee, states the total number of packages or containers in the shipment, and for each species in the shipment specifies:

(A) The common name that identifies the species (examples include: Chinook (or king) salmon; bluefin tuna; and whitetail deer) and whether or not the listed species is venomous; and

(B) The number of that species (or other appropriate measure of quantity such as gross or net weight).

The invoice, packing list, bill of lading, or equivalent document must be securely attached to the outside of one container or package in the shipment or otherwise physically accompany the shipment in a manner which makes it readily accessible for inspection; or

(2) Affixing the shipper's wildlife import/export license number preceded by the three letters “FWS” on the outside of each container or package containing fish or wildlife, if the shipper has valid wildlife import/export license issued under authority of 50 CFR part 14. For each shipment marked in accordance with this paragraph, the records maintained under §14.93(c) must include a copy of the invoice, packing list, bill of lading, or other similar document that accurately states the information required by paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of this section.

(3) In the case of subcontainers or packages within a larger packing container, only the outermost container must be marked in accordance with this section. Except, that for live fish or wildlife that are packed in subcontainers within a larger packing container, if the subcontainers are numbered or labeled, the packing list, invoice, bill or lading, or other similar document, must reflect that number or label. However, each subcontainer containing a venomous species must be clearly marked as venomous.

(4) A conveyance (truck, plane, boat, etc.) is not considered a container for purposes of requiring specific marking of the conveyance itself, provided that:

(i) The fish or wildlife within the conveyance is carried loosely or is readily identifiable, and is accompanied by the document required by paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of this section, or

(ii) The fish or wildlife is otherwise packaged and marked in accordance with this subpart.

(b) The requirements of §14.81 do not apply to containers or packages containing—

(1) Fox, nutria, rabbit, mink, chinchilla, marten, fisher, muskrat, and karakul that have been bred and born in captivity, or their products, if a signed statement certifying that the animals were bred and born in captivity accompanies the shipping documents;

(2) Fish or shellfish contained in retail consumer packages labeled pursuant to the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. 301 et seq. ; or

(3) Fish or shellfish that are landed by, and offloaded from, a fishing vessel (whether or not the catch has been carried by the fishing vessel interstate), as long as the fish or shellfish remain at the place where first offloaded.

Thank you for your cooperation in complying with our regulations that help protect fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats. Please feel free to respond to this message with any further inquiries that you may have regarding this matter.

Personally what annoys me about the whole thing is that they have the important documentation spread out all over the place instead of neatly all together in one document.

A post on ReptileRadio.net that was brought to my attention via e-mail has me a bit concerned...

Originally Posted by Robyn@ProExotics

Try not to be flamboyant. Remember the reptile phobia. Don't go into your drop off spot and talk about the 200 corn snakes you hatched this year. Be smooth, be stealth. What's in the box? Invertebrates.

This to me reads that you are advising users of ShipYourReptiles.com to lie to UPS employees about the contents of a package. I hope I am taking this out of context because this is a red flag to me personally.

I really, really would love to see this program succeed (especially after the Reptster debacle)...I hope these concerns can be addressed and worked out.

Well, I shipped a snake through them--using a properly marked box. It's arrived safely, and no one at UPS even blinked--no issues at all.
So, that confirms that one can use Pro's shipping services and abide by the labeling requirements, and encounter no problems. I'm sure problems might arise in some places, with some people...but that happens even with Fed Ex certs. So, I'm satisfied with this much at least.

I sincerely believe that 50 CFR Part 14 addresses the Lacey Act's requirements for labeling. I'm not sure why anyone would think otherwise. 50 CFR Part 14 must be followed when you label packages--whether you want to link it back to the Lacey Act or to something else, it's a law, and it's right there. If you want to completely forget about the Lacey Act, you STILL have to abide by 50 CFR Part 14.

Maybe folks should just stop referring to the Lacey Act altogether, as it appears to be confusing, and send people directly to 50 CFR Part 14 when they have questions about labeling requirements. That might alleviate a lot of the confusion we're seeing. People keep looking at the Lacey Act, and finding there's nothing there about how they should label packages. Maybe there's no point in mentioning the Lacey Act in the first place.

"Try not to be flamboyant. Remember the reptile phobia. Don't go into your drop off spot and talk about the 200 corn snakes you hatched this year. Be smooth, be stealth. What's in the box? Invertebrates."

That was me, yes, but that was a typo, trying to be everywhere at once. I meant to say VERTEBRATES. Which is indeed accurate. Sorry for any confusion, that was my fault, but a typo, not encouraging you to lie : )

I will correct that at the Bush League forums.

Hey TME, if I read your F&W reply accurately, it states that:

(a) The requirements of §14.81 may be met by complying with one of the following alternatives to the marking requirement:

And then it lists any number of alternatives, one of which includes using a proper invoice with the package that is easily accessible, which for many shippers, it certainly is. We include our invoice under the top box flap, but above the insulation, so it is the first thing you see when opening the package.

With our ShipYourReptiles.com Shipping Kits, which are premade kits including everything you need to ship a single species, we also include a (red text) HARMLESS LIVE REPTILE label (caps are on the paper) that is to go above ALL of your paperwork, so that red notice of live harmless reptiles is the first thing that someone sees when opening the box. This is of benefit to the UPS employee who needs to find better delivery info after having a damaged or missing label, or maybe a reptile phobic member of the receiving household that is for some reason opening Jenny's shipment of reptiles.

You did misread it (it is confusing).
You have to pay attention to the numbers. I'll go through and color code each section for ease of reading.

Ok, so an invoice inside, and the word "wildlife" on the outside. Easy enough.

Originally Posted by robyn@Pro Exotics

Hey TME, if I read your F&W reply accurately, it states that:

(a) The requirements of §14.81 may be met by complying with one of the following alternatives to the marking requirement:

And then it lists any number of alternatives, one of which includes using a proper invoice with the package that is easily accessible, which for many shippers, it certainly is. We include our invoice under the top box flap, but above the insulation, so it is the first thing you see when opening the package.

With our ShipYourReptiles.com Shipping Kits, which are premade kits including everything you need to ship a single species, we also include a (red text) HARMLESS LIVE REPTILE label (caps are on the paper) that is to go above ALL of your paperwork, so that red notice of live harmless reptiles is the first thing that someone sees when opening the box. This is of benefit to the UPS employee who needs to find better delivery info after having a damaged or missing label, or maybe a reptile phobic member of the receiving household that is for some reason opening Jenny's shipment of reptiles.

I've certainly seen and received large shipments that had only a general labeling on the external box and a more specific invoice inside...

Tropical fish, in addition to reptiles and amphibians, for example, are shipped in this manner by the massive suppliers. "Live ______" on the outside of the box, with a specific box marked as containing the invoice for the shipment (often multiple boxes), which lists the common names, nomenclature and number.

Since some of those companies ship millions of animals a year, I doubt that they're violating any federal laws on a regular basis in doing so.