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Pacific Yew Act

Public Law 102-335 · H.R. 3836 · 102nd Congress · began in the House

Signed by George H. W. Bush (R) on Aug 7, 1992 · Public Lands and Natural Resources

Sponsor: Rep. Gerry Studds (D-MA-10)

Cosponsors (38): Rep. Ron Wyden,

Passage votes

  • HouseVoice vote
  • SenateVoice vote
Data notes

The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.

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Summary

The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.

Pacific Yet Act - Directs the Secretaries of Agriculture (defined as the Secretary of Agriculture relating to lands and interests under the jurisdiction of the Forest Service and the Secretary of the Interior relating to lands and interests under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management) and of the Interior (Secretaries) to pursue a conservation and management policy relating to lands and interests under their respective jurisdiction which contain Pacific yew trees in order to: (1) provide for the sustainable harvest of the Pacific yew, or Pacific yew parts, in accordance with relevant land and resource management plans for the manufacture of taxol (a cancer-treating drug made from the Pacific yew); and (2) provide for the long-term conservation of such tree in the wild.

Requires the Secretary concerned to ensure that timber sales awarded after the enactment of this Act and such sales completed before such enactment but still unharvested be conducted in accordance with the policy expressed by this Act and relevant land and resource management plan of the Secretary concerned.

Directs the Secretary concerned to immediately reinitiate consultation under provisions of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to determine the effect on endangered and threatened species and critical habitat if the need arises to harvest only Pacific yew trees in an area for which an opinion has been issued under such Act concluding that a commercial timber sale is likely to jeopardize the continued existence of an endangered or threatened species or destroy or adversely modify the critical habitat identified for the species.

Requires the Secretaries to: (1) inventory Pacific yew on lands under their respective jurisdiction; and (2) encourage and, where appropriate, assist in research regarding the ecology of the Pacific yew, the development of alternative methods of procuring taxol (including utilization of other yew species in addition to bark), the sustainable harvest of yew needles, the utilization of other yew species, and propagation of Pacific yew and other yew species in agricultural or commercial settings.

Directs the Secretary concerned to ensure: (1) development, implementation, and enforcement of processes for the collection and sale of Pacific yew resources to minimize the illegal harvest and sale of such resources; and (2) timely access to Pacific yew resources so that collection of Pacific yew parts can occur before the taxol properties of such parts are degraded.

Authorizes the Secretaries to negotiate sales of Pacific yew for at least the appraised value to federally-approved parties manufacturing taxol in the United States for human use. Directs the Secretary concerned to make material unutilized by purchasers of Pacific yew available to others. States that except under this Act the Pacific yew shall not be sold for commercial use.

Authorizes the Secretary concerned to use amounts received from the sale of Pacific yew to pay the cost incurred associated with the harvest and sale of it. Requires the Secretary concerned to keep accurate records of all sales, bark removal, or other harvest of the Pacific yew.

Authorizes the Secretary concerned to permit taxol derived from Pacific yew harvested before the enactment of this Act to be used for purposes other than research if the Secretary of Health and Human Services certifies to such Secretary that permission will: (1) increase patient access to taxol treatment; and (2) not result in insufficient supplies of taxol for clinical research.

States that nothing in this Act shall be interpreted as modifying the provisions of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, or the Endangered Species Act of 1973 except as explicitly provided.

Requires the Secretaries to report annually to specified congressional committees on: (1) a judgment as to whether sufficient amounts of Pacific yew have been harvested, and can continue to be harvested for the next year to supply necessary amounts of taxol required for medicinal purposes, together with a summary of the information on which the judgment is based; and (2) results of the Pacific yew inventory.

Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) determine when quantities of taxol sufficient to satisfy medicinal needs are available from sources other than Pacific yew trees harvested from Federal lands; and (2) notify each Secretary concerned.

Terminates the requirements of this Act if the Secretary concerned approves the determination and notifies the relevant congressional committees.

Committees

The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.

  • Agriculture Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Department Operations, Research, and Foreign Agriculture Subcommittee; Forests, Family Farms, and Energy Subcommittee
  • Natural Resources Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Federal Lands Subcommittee
  • Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation and the Environment Subcommittee
Data notes

A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.

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Timeline

From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 30 actions.

  1. Aug 7, 1992Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 102-335.
  2. Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
  3. Jul 29, 1992PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
  4. Jul 23, 1992FloorFloor · Passed Senate in lieu of S. 2851 without amendment by Voice Vote.
  5. Jul 7, 1992FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  6. FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.
  7. FloorFloor · Mr. Studds moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
  8. CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Agriculture Committee
  9. CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Natural Resources Committee
  10. Jun 18, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Agriculture Committee
  11. Jun 10, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Natural Resources Committee
  12. Jun 9, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
  13. Jun 4, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Federal Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
  14. CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Federal Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
  15. May 14, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
  16. May 13, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Forests, Family Farms, and Energy Subcommittee of the House Agriculture Committee
  17. CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Forests, Family Farms, and Energy Subcommittee of the House Agriculture Committee
  18. May 12, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation and the Environment Subcommittee of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
  19. CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation and the Environment Subcommittee of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
  20. Mar 4, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Forests, Family Farms, and Energy Subcommittee of the House Agriculture Committee
  21. CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Federal Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
  22. CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation and the Environment Subcommittee of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
  23. Jan 3, 1992CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Federal Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
  24. Nov 26, 1991CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation and the Environment Subcommittee of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
  25. Nov 25, 1991CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Department Operations, Research, and Foreign Agriculture Subcommittee of the House Agriculture Committee
  26. CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Forests, Family Farms, and Energy Subcommittee of the House Agriculture Committee
  27. Nov 20, 1991CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Agriculture Committee
  28. CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Natural Resources Committee
  29. CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
  30. IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the House
Data notes

Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.

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Official record

The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.