In late 2003 Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) introduced a bill that would ban the slaughter of Yellowstone National Park bison on federal lands was again introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports that the bill has picked up 42 co-sponsors in the House, but even if it should squeak by there it would face steep opposition in the U.S. Senate.
Montana Department of Livestock spokeswoman Karen Cooper told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle that the slaughter of bison was necessary to fight brucellosis — a disease carried by some Yellowstone bison that could potentially infect cattle herds in Montana,
The state remains brucellosis free, and we have close to a record [bison] population, so it seems to be successful in that realm.
Opponents of the bison slaughter, on the other hand, note that thereÂ’s not a single documented case of brucellosis spreading from bison to cattle in the wild.
The full text of the proposed bison slaughter ban can be read here.
Source:
Bill to ban slaughter of bison advances. Scott McMillion, Bozeman Daily Chronicle, January 17, 2004.