“WASHINGTON (April 27, 2016) – The Vote Bison Coalition is proud to celebrate the House and Senate passage of theNational Bison Legacy Act, which when signed by the President will officially make bison the National Mammal of the United States.
The bill’s passage is the culmination of four year effort by the coalition, a group of more than 60 organizations, tribes and businesses led by the Inter Tribal Buffalo Council, National Bison Association, and Wildlife Conservation Society, to officially commemorate the ecological, cultural, historical and economic contribution of bison. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND), Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE), Rep. Kristi Noem (R-SD), and Rep. José Serrano (D-NY) championed the bill in Congress, along with many co-sponsors from both parties.
The bison, North America’s largest land mammal, has an important role in America’s history, culture and economy. Before being nearly wiped from existence by westward expansion, bison roamed across most of North America. The species is acknowledged as the first American conservation success story, having been brought back from the brink of extinction by a concerted effort of ranchers, conservationists, tribes and politicians to save the species in the early 20th century. In 1907, President Teddy Roosevelt and the American Bison Society began this effort by shipping 15 animals by train from the Bronx Zoo to Oklahoma’s Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. Many Native American tribes revere bison as a sacred and spiritual symbol of their heritage and are restoring bison herds on tribal lands throughout the West. Bison now exist in all 50 states in public and private herds, providing recreation opportunities for wildlife viewers in parks, refuges, zoos, and grasslands while sustaining a multimillion dollar sector of American agriculture.
The Vote Bison Coalition, led by steering committee members the Inter Tribal Buffalo Council, National Bison Association and Wildlife Conservation Society, formed in 2012 to make bison the National Mammal and to celebrate National Bison Day annually on the first Saturday of November. The coalition counts more than 60 businesses, tribal groups and organizations who have banded together to support efforts to celebrate bison. Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, Chief Earl Old Person of the Blackfeet Nation, and Ted Roosevelt V, great-great grandson of President Roosevelt, serve as the Advisory Council to the coalition.”
