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Subcommittee hears testimony on Artist Act to protect Alaska Native ivory art
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Summary
Witnesses and Alaska Native leaders urged the subcommittee to pass the Artist Act to clarify Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) treatment of authentic Alaska Native handicrafts; NOAA and members raised questions about statutory definitions and how the bill interacts with state ivory bans. No vote was taken.
The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries held a legislative hearing on a measure known as the Artist Act (HR 5694) intended to protect the sale and possession of authentic Alaska Native art made from marine-mammal materials.
Chief Megan Anders of the King Island Native Community, who traveled from Alaska to testify, said carving and handicraft production are central to village economies and cultural transmission. "This bill is about our native way of life," Anders said, adding that sales of carvings help families pay for fuel and basic necessities. She told the committee that tribal co-management systems and federal cooperative agreements regulate subsistence hunting and the use of marine-mammal parts.
NOAA Assistant Secretary Tim Petty told the subcommittee the agency "would recognize that existing authority" under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and expects the bill to clarify definitions for "authentic Alaska Native articles of handicraft and clothing." Petty said NOAA does not anticipate new regulatory requirements but emphasized the need to refine statutory definitions with committee staff.
Ranking Member Huffman said he supports clarifying the MMPA authority to give Alaska Native artists certainty but warned that the language should not undercut other states' efforts to enforce bans on elephant ivory. "We just have to be careful how we do it," Huffman said, urging careful drafting as the bill moves forward.
Committee members pressed witnesses about the specific changes to MMPA Section 101(b) and how implementation would be handled across jurisdictions; Petty urged staff-level engagement to resolve definitional questions. Chief Anders and witnesses reiterated that the exemption for Alaska Natives is part of a broader co‑management and subsistence framework and that the bill would protect both cultural practices and a source of income.
The subcommittee did not vote on the Artist Act at the hearing. Members were told they could submit additional questions for the record; the clerk will accept questions until 5 p.m. ET on March 31, and the hearing record will remain open for 10 business days.
