House Passes Legislation to Increase Services for Victims of Human Trafficking

Press Release

Today, Rep. Candice Miller (MI-10), Vice Chair of the House Homeland Security Committee and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security, issued the following statement on House passage of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 (S. 178), legislation that increases federal funding for human trafficking victim support and strengthens law enforcement tools for prosecuting human trafficking offenses:

"Human trafficking is the fastest-growing criminal activity in the world, estimated to be worth over $30 billion annually. Offenders of this heinous crime often prey on society's most vulnerable, our children, and too often it goes undetected and unreported. Its impact is global, and communities here in the U.S. are no exception. According to the Department of Justice, as many as 300,000 American children are at risk of being trafficked for sex in the U.S. each year.

"To help combat this horrific crime, today, the House passed legislation that establishes a new federal fund, created by fines collected from trafficking and sex offenders, for states to provide services to trafficking victims. This important legislation also strengthens law enforcement tools for detecting and prosecuting trafficking crimes and adds the production of child pornography to the list of crimes punishable as a trafficking offense."

Key highlights of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 (S. 178):

Establishes a Domestic Trafficking Victims Fund, funded through a new assessment of $5,000 imposed on individuals convicted of sexual abuse or exploitation, human smuggling, or human trafficking, for states and localities to combat trafficking, provide protection and assistance for victims, develop and implement child abuse prevention programs, and provide services to victims of child pornography;

Expands the definition of "child abuse" to include human trafficking and the production of child pornography, and classifies producers of child pornography as traffickers engaged in illicit sexual conduct;

Directs the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), within the Department of Homeland Security, to establish a Cyber Crimes Center with a Child Exploitation Investigation Unit;

Directs the Department of Defense to provide the Department of Justice with sex offender registration information of individuals who are released from military corrections facilities or convicted by court-martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice of criminal sexual activity;

Authorizes the Department of Justice to give preferential treatment in awarding public safety and community-oriented policing grants to an applicant from a state that treats a minor who engages in or attempts to engage in commercial sex as a victim of a severe form of trafficking;

Requires the Department of Homeland Security to train and retrain relevant personnel in the Transportation Security Administration, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and other DHS personnel on how to effectively deter, detect, and disrupt human trafficking.

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