# 119-hr-7159: Protecting Local Zoos Act of 2026

119-hr-7159, Protecting Local Zoos Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Gosar, Paul A. [R-AZ-9] (R-AZ); status in_committee; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-04-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7159
- As of: 2026-04-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-7159
- Congress: 119
- Title: Protecting Local Zoos Act of 2026
- Status: in_committee
- Introduced: 2026-01-20
- Sponsor: Rep. Gosar, Paul A. [R-AZ-9] (R-AZ)
- Cosponsors: 2
- Policy area: Animals
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-04-21

## Summary

**This bill would expand who can legally hold and show certain prohibited wild animals and change which species are listed as prohibited.** **It would require covered holders to register each prohibited animal with the Fish and Wildlife Service and bar breeding, buying, selling, public contact, and exhibition of those animals.** - Local zoos and facilities licensed under the U.S. Department of Agriculture as Class B, along with owners, executives, volunteers, and a broader set of veterinary or medical staff, would be recognized as possible possessors or exhibitors of these species. - Covered holders would have to register each individual prohibited animal and, beginning on the registration date, may not breed, acquire, or sell those species, allow direct public contact, or exhibit them to the public. - The bill would let compliant, covered facilities import from or export to foreign entities lawfully operating in their country. It would also create a process for registered entities to apply to cancel a mistaken registration with the Fish and Wildlife Service.

## Cosponsors (2)

- Rep. Soto, Darren [D-FL-9] (D-FL), 2026-01-21T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Miller, Carol D. [R-WV-1] (R-WV), 2026-03-04T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Snow and clouded leopards allowed: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would remove snow leopards, clouded leopards, and any hybrids of those species from the prohibited wildlife list. That change would let owners or exhibitors legally possess or show those animals under other applicable laws. The change would take effect upon enactment.
- New rules for zoos and exhibitors: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would add USDA Class B license holders to the regulated group. It would also expand covered staff to owners, executives, volunteers, veterinary assistants, and veterinary technicians. People in paragraphs (2)(A), (B), or (C) who possess prohibited wildlife would have to registe…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025
- 119-hr-6766: Essential Caregivers Act of 2025
- 119-hr-9641: Essential Caregivers Act of 2026
- 119-hr-1151: Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act
- 119-hr-979: AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act of 2025
- 119-hr-516: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify the railroad track maintenance credit.

## Sources
- [119-hr-7159 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7159)

## Related
- [119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4669)
- [119-hr-6766: Essential Caregivers Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-6766)
- [119-hr-9641: Essential Caregivers Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9641)
- [119-hr-1151: Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1151)
- [119-hr-979: AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-979)
- [119-hr-516: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify the railroad track mainten…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-516)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7159 (as of 2026-04-21).