first meeting of the negotiated rulemaking advisory committee was held in September 1995 and 

 a final meeting is scheduled for spring 1996. 



The export of marine mammals to foreign countries has been controversial because 

 standards for foreign facilities are often lower than those in the United States, and animals may 

 be subjected to inhumane conditions. Amendments to the Marine Mammal Protection Act 

 enacted in 1994 require that permits to export live marine mammals be granted only if foreign 

 facilities meet standards comparable to U.S. requirements. The Commission has provided 

 advice to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service on how best to implement the 

 requirement, including a recommendation that comparability determinations be based in part on 

 inspection of the foreign facilities in question. 



Appendices 



Appendix A lists recommendations made by the Marine Mammal Commission in 1995. 

 Appendix B lists Commission-sponsored reports published by the National Technical Information 

 Service. Appendix C lists citations for other papers and reports, which also result from 

 Commission-sponsored work, that have been published elsewhere. 



Xlll 



