Congress names two dinosaurs as official national symbols
H.R. 9191 — National Fossil Act of 2026 · Filed by Erin Houchin (R-IN) · 9 cosponsors · Introduced Jun 8, 2026 · Passed chamber
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What it does
This bill designates the American mastodon as the national fossil mammal and the Tyrannosaurus rex as the national fossil dinosaur of the United States. It amends federal law to add these two designations to the existing chapter of U.S. Code that already names the national anthem, motto, floral emblem, march, tree, and bird.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole function is to designate two paleontological symbols as official national emblems. It is purely ceremonial legislation with no regulatory, fiscal, or substantive policy mechanism.
Who it affects
This is a harmless symbolic designation with no direct cost or benefit to citizens. It adds two paleontological symbols to the nation's official emblems, which is a minor public-interest cultural act with no negative consequences.
Named in the bill
United States Congress, House of Representatives, 36 U.S.C. Chapter 3, American mastodon (Mammut americanum), Tyrannosaurus rex
Where it stands
9 cosponsors: 7 Republicans, 2 Democrats.
- Jun 8, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jun 8, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on the Judiciary and Senate Committee on the Judiciary · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary”
- Jul 15, 2026 — Markup held in committee · Congress.gov: “Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held”
- Jul 15, 2026 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 22 - 1”
- Sep 16, 2026 — Passed the House · Congress.gov: “On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote”
- Sep 16, 2026 — Floor vote scheduled · Congress.gov: “Ms. Lee (FL) moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,041 characters) on Jul 16, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-10-20.
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