johnptc;890325; said:
thanks for the link.... when i spoke to cali dfg... i was told no way becuase of lacey act........john
The Lacey Act only applies to specimens that are illegally imported. Arowanas are illegal for import under the Endangered Species Act. The ESA actually provides a means for importing listed species under very limited circumstances. So, in theory, if you lawfully import a species under the ESA, you could lawfully sell/trade across state borders regardless of the ESA. This is something that has caused a snag in my project with the USFWS.
The problem is that once the fish are here (legally) a federal law cannot impede on a person's rights to sell the fish to someone in another state. Interstate commerce actually overrules federal law in this case. The catch is that the permit is for "take", which includes "possess". So, while the act of selling the fish may not be illegal, provided that you obtained it legally, the person buying would be breaking the law by "possessing" an endangered species without proper permits.
Hope this clears it up.
Below is the actual text from the Lacey Act: (#1 in bold and underlined below is the key)
§ 3372. Prohibited acts
(a) Offenses other than marking offenses
It is unlawful for any person--
(1) to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase any fish or wildlife or plant taken, possessed, transported, or sold
in violation of any law, treaty, or regulation of the United States or in violation of any Indian tribal law;
(2) to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign commerce--
(A) any fish or wildlife taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any State or in violation of any foreign law, or
(B) any plant taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any State;
(3) within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States (as defined in section 7 of Title 18)--
(A) to possess any fish or wildlife taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any State or in violation of any foreign law or Indian tribal law, or
(B) to possess any plant taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any State; [FN1]
(4) to attempt to commit any act described in paragraphs (1) through (4). [FN2]
(b) Marking offenses
It is unlawful for any person to import, export, or transport in interstate commerce any container or package containing any fish or wildlife unless the container or package has previously been plainly marked, labeled, or tagged in accordance with the regulations issued pursuant to paragraph (2) of section 3376(a) of this title.
(c) Sale and purchase of guiding and outfitting services and invalid licenses and permits
(1) Sale
It is deemed to be a sale of fish or wildlife in violation of this chapter for a person for money or other consideration to offer or provide--
(A) guiding, outfitting, or other services; or
(B) a hunting or fishing license or permit;
for the illegal taking, acquiring, receiving, transporting, or possessing of fish or wildlife.
(2) Purchase
It is deemed to be a purchase of fish or wildlife in violation of this chapter for a person to obtain for money or other consideration--
(A) guiding, outfitting, or other services; or
(B) a hunting or fishing license or permit;
for the illegal taking, acquiring, receiving, transporting, or possessing of fish or wildlife.
(d) False labeling offenses
It is unlawful for any person to make or submit any false record, account, or label for, or any false identification of, any fish, wildlife, or plant which has been, or is intended to be--
(1) imported, exported, transported, sold, purchased, or received from any foreign country; or
(2) transported in interstate or foreign commerce.
In contrast, the text from the ESA (prohibited acts) is here:
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=browse_usc&docid=Cite:+16USC1538
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