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administers the Animal Welfare Act as it applies to many kinds of 

 animals, including marine mammals. 



We work closely with APHIS. When we review an application for a 

 public display permit, in addition to considering the public 

 display- specific requirements of the MMPA, we ask APHIS to review 

 and comment on the application, considering the results of their 

 most recent routine inspection of the applicant's facility, or, 

 if the facility is new, to conduct an inspection. In this 

 manner, we rely on APHIS assurances that applicable care and 

 maintenance standards for marine mammals are met by the applicant 

 before issuing a permit. Then, as a condition of the public 

 display permit, NMFS requires the permitted facility to adhere to 

 these care and maintenance standards . 



Other terms and conditions of the permit incorporate public 

 display-specific requirements of the MMPA, provide a mechanism 

 for tracking the marine mammals held by the facility, and meet 

 other requirements of the law applicable to captive marine 

 mammals. We routinely work with APHIS in investigating 

 complaints regarding the humane care and treatment of captive 

 marine mammals. We recently reviewed our working relationship 

 with APHIS and both agencies concluded that we are working 

 together well and our long-standing interagency agreement for 

 this purpose remains effective. 



