# 119-hr-8401: To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the transport, purchase, and sale of pelts of, and handicrafts, garments, and art produced from, Southcentral and Southeast Alaska northern sea otters that are taken for subsistence purposes.

119-hr-8401, To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the transport, purchase, and sale of pelts of, and handicrafts, garments, and art produced from, Southcentral and Southeast Alaska northern sea otters that are taken for subsistence purposes., is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Begich, Nicholas J. [R-AK-At Large] (R-AK); status in_committee; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8401
- As of: 2026-09-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-8401
- Congress: 119
- Title: To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to allow the transport, purchase, and sale of pelts of, and handicrafts, garments, and art produced from, Southcentral and Southeast Alaska northern sea otters that are taken for subsistence purposes.
- Status: in_committee
- Introduced: 2026-04-21
- Sponsor: Rep. Begich, Nicholas J. [R-AK-At Large] (R-AK)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Policy area: Animals
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-21

## Summary

**Permits sale and export of northern sea otter pelts and products taken for subsistence in Southcentral and Southeast Alaska.** The bill adds a new subsection to the Marine Mammal Protection Act that says nothing in the Act stops the transport, purchase, sale, or offer to buy or sell pelts from the Southcentral or Southeast Alaska stock of northern sea otters if those pelts were taken for subsistence under section 101(b)(1). It also allows the transport, purchase, sale, export, or offers to trade handicrafts, garments, or art made from those pelts regardless of whether those items are traditional, contemporary, or significantly altered. - Alaska Native subsistence harvesters: Can legally transport and sell pelts taken for subsistence purposes under section 101(b)(1) from the Southcentral and Southeast Alaska northern sea otter stocks. - Artisans and craftspeople in those regions: May create, sell, and export handicrafts, garments, and art made from those pelts whether the pieces are traditional or altered. - Buyers, sellers, and exporters: May offer to buy, sell, transport, and export these pelts and finished items from the specified Alaska stocks.

## Provisions PRIA read

- Allow sale of Alaska otter pelts: benefit, low. If enacted, this bill would let people transport, buy, sell, or offer to buy or sell pelts of northern sea otters from the Southcentral and Southeast Alaska stocks. That would only apply when the pelt was taken for subsistence under section 101(b)(1). If enacted, it would also let people transport,…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025
- 119-hr-3633: Digital Asset Market Clarity Act
- 119-hr-471: Fix Our Forests Act
- 119-hr-7613: ALERT Act
- 119-hr-4075: Fire Weather Development Act of 2025
- 119-hr-5351: NSF AI Education Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-hr-8401 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8401)

## Related
- [119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4669)
- [119-hr-3633: Digital Asset Market Clarity Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3633)
- [119-hr-471: Fix Our Forests Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-471)
- [119-hr-7613: ALERT Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7613)
- [119-hr-4075: Fire Weather Development Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4075)
- [119-hr-5351: NSF AI Education Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5351)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8401 (as of 2026-09-21).