The Issue

John F. Kennedy International Airport is one of only a handful of U.S. airports where hunters are legally allowed to bring in trophies from elephants, lions, leopards, giraffes, and other animals killed on trophy hunts abroad. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) designates JFK as one of these approved entry points and issues the permits, under the Endangered Species Act and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), that make these imports legal.

New York is not a passive bystander in this trade. As a designated federal port of entry, JFK is where these shipments legally land, are inspected, and are released. That makes both the Port Authority, which operates JFK, and USFWS, which regulates the shipments, central to the problem — and to the solution.

Trophy hunting drives population decline in already-threatened species, undermines in-country conservation efforts that rely on live animals rather than dead ones, and runs counter to the values of the New Yorkers whose home airport facilitates it.

Our Demands

Of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey:

1. Adopt a formal policy opposing the use of JFK's facilities for the import of hunting trophies from species listed under CITES Appendix I or II, or under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
2. Direct Port Authority leadership to formally petition USFWS to reconsider JFK's status as a designated port for trophy shipments of these species.
3. Publicly disclose, on an annual basis, the volume and species composition of hunting trophies processed through JFK.

Of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:

1. Strengthen permitting standards under the Endangered Species Act and CITES to deny import permits for trophies of species facing population decline, regardless of the exporting country's management claims.
2. Increase inspection and enforcement resources at designated ports, including JFK, to ensure permits are properly verified before trophies are released.
3. Publish real-time, public data on trophy import permits granted and denied by port, so New Yorkers can see what is passing through their own airport.

Why This Matters to New York Voters

New Yorkers have consistently supported stronger protections for animals at the ballot box and in the State Legislature and City Council. A hunting trophy trade routed through our region's busiest international airport is out of step with that record. We are asking the agencies with authority over JFK and over wildlife imports to close that gap.