Title 16 — ConservationRelease 119-73

§470aaa–5 Prohibited acts; criminal penalties

Title 16 › Chapter CHAPTER 1C— - PALEONTOLOGICAL RESOURCES PRESERVATION › § 470aaa–5

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

It is illegal to dig up, damage, alter, remove, move, trade, sell, or buy fossils found on federal land unless you follow the rules in this law. You also must not make or submit false records, labels, or identifications for fossils taken from federal land. If someone knowingly breaks these rules or hires or helps another person to break them, they can be fined under federal law, go to jail for up to 5 years, or both. If the total value and repair costs are $500 or less, jail time is up to 2 years instead. Penalties can be doubled for repeat offenses. People who lawfully owned a fossil before March 30, 2009 are not covered by the ban on removal or trade.

Full Legal Text

Title 16, §470aaa–5

Conservation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)A person may not—

(1)excavate, remove, damage, or otherwise alter or deface or attempt to excavate, remove, damage, or otherwise alter or deface any paleontological resources located on Federal land unless such activity is conducted in accordance with this chapter;

(2)exchange, transport, export, receive, or offer to exchange, transport, export, or receive any paleontological resource if the person knew or should have known such resource to have been excavated or removed from Federal land in violation of any provisions, rule, regulation, law, ordinance, or permit in effect under Federal law, including this chapter; or

(3)sell or purchase or offer to sell or purchase any paleontological resource if the person knew or should have known such resource to have been excavated, removed, sold, purchased, exchanged, transported, or received from Federal land.

(b)A person may not make or submit any false record, account, or label for, or any false identification of, any paleontological resource excavated or removed from Federal land.

(c)A person who knowingly violates or counsels, procures, solicits, or employs another person to violate subsection (a) or (b) shall, upon conviction, be fined in accordance with title 18 or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both; but if the sum of the commercial and paleontological value of the paleontological resources involved and the cost of restoration and repair of such resources does not exceed $500, such person shall be fined in accordance with title 18 or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both.

(d)In the case of a second or subsequent violation by the same person, the amount of the penalty assessed under subsection (c) may be doubled.

(e)Nothing in subsection (a) shall apply to any person with respect to any paleontological resource which was in the lawful possession of such person prior to March 30, 2009.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

16 U.S.C. § 470aaa–5

Title 16 — Conservation

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73