New Lacey Act Amendments

[Homebody]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but here's my understanding of the Lacey Act amendments. If enacted:

1. Transporting injurious species across state lines will be prohibited;
2. The Secretary of the Interior will be empowered to prohibit the importation of any species of "wild mammals, wild birds, fish (including mollusks and crustacea), amphibians, or reptiles" he/she deems injurious to human beings, to the interests of agriculture, horticulture, forestry, or to wildlife or the wildlife resources of the United States for up to 3 years;
3. The importation of any species of "wild mammals, wild birds, fish (including mollusks and crustacea), amphibians, or reptiles" that is not native to the United States is prohibited unless: a) the species was imported into the United States or transported between the states in more than minimal quantities last year (# of minimal quantities to be decided later); or b) the Secretary of the Interior determines the species does not pose a significant risk of invasiveness.

The significance of these changes, as I understand them, are as follows:
1. The current injurious species list includes retics and burms, so no one will be able to transport retics and burms across state lines. I can't imagine how the market for retics and burms could survive. It would also stop keepers of these species from moving with their pets or seeking veterinary help across state lines. I believe this would include the dwarf varieties as well. I mention burms and retics because they are the most popular of the injurious species but the list includes others. That list is likely to grow, which brings me to my next point.
2. The Secretary of the Interior will be able to add species to the injurious species list much more easily. In fact, you won't find out a species you breed or keep is being added until it has already happened, so there will be no way to stop it. We don't know to what extent the Secretary will use this power. She could add a bunch of commonly kept species to the list on day one, or she may not add a single species for the rest of her tenure. We don't know. We do know that every species added to the list will suffer the same fate as the retics and burms.
3. The other big question mark is what constitutes "minimum quantities." I take this to mean that they don't want to stop species that are currently being imported. They want to stop any new species from being imported. I think they will come up with a list of commonly imported species, decide species by species if it poses a significant risk of invasiveness, and if not, add the species to the "white" list of permitted imports. While this will limit the impact on the most commonly kept pets, it will stop us from getting any new ones.