[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7919 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7919

 To direct the Attorney General to convene a national working group to 
   study proactive strategies and needed resources for the rescue of 
  children from sexual exploitation and abuse, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 31, 2020

  Ms. Spanberger (for herself and Mr. Cline) introduced the following 
       bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To direct the Attorney General to convene a national working group to 
   study proactive strategies and needed resources for the rescue of 
  children from sexual exploitation and abuse, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Response to Exploitation 
and Sexual Abuse of Children in Unaddressed Emergencies Act'' or the 
``Child RESCUE Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The growing international trade in child abuse imagery 
        creates demand and incentive for the sexual assault of children 
        throughout the United States.
            (2) United States law enforcement efforts to combat child 
        sexual exploitation have the potential to help multiple 
        distinct groups of victims, including children depicted in the 
        imagery itself who are still being assaulted; children and 
        adults whose past victimization is being viewed and shared 
        online; and children who are being sexually assaulted by adults 
        who could be interdicted while accessing or sharing illegal 
        imagery online.
            (3) In 2006, Congressional hearings of the Committee on 
        Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, the 
        Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and 
        State law enforcement leaders estimated that there are hundreds 
        of thousands of adults in the United States engaging in child 
        sexual abuse material crimes.
            (4) A growing body of research--including academic studies, 
        analysis by the United States Sentencing Commission, and 
        findings by law enforcement polygraphers--indicates that a 
        majority of individuals possessing and sharing child sexual 
        abuse material are ``dual offenders'', who both possess illegal 
        imagery and also commit contact offenses.
            (5) According to the National Association to Protect 
        Children, identifying dual offenders through proactive police 
        investigations is one of the most effective strategies for 
        child sexual abuse prevention available. By using technology-
        assisted policing strategies, law enforcement can follow the 
        trail of illegal imagery to the locations of offenders who have 
        a sexual interest in children, enabling the rescue of current 
        victims and interrupting future assaults.
            (6) Despite this historic opportunity to locate child 
        sexual predators and rescue children, United States law 
        enforcement is increasingly unable to conduct proactive 
        investigations aimed at finding the most dangerous predators. 
        According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited 
        Children, leads from electronic service providers and the 
        public grew exponentially over the past decade, from 500,000 in 
        2008 to 18.4 million in 2018. This influx of reports has 
        overwhelmed law enforcement agencies and task forces, forcing 
        them to limit proactive investigations.
            (7) While continued, rapid response to leads from 
        electronic service providers and the public is essential, 
        increasing child rescues also requires United States law 
        enforcement to increase and improve its capacity to conduct 
        victim-centric, proactive investigations of suspects it 
        believes have the highest likelihood of being contact 
        offenders.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF WORKING GROUP.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Attorney General shall establish a national working 
group, to be known as the U.S. Commission on Children in Imminent 
Danger, to study proactive policing strategies and resource needs to 
rescue children in the United States who are--
            (1) victims of child sexual abuse material; or
            (2) victims of sexual abuse by individuals who are also 
        engaged in child sexual abuse material crimes.
    (b) Priority.--In carrying out the study described in subsection 
(a), the U.S. Commission on Children in Imminent Danger shall give 
priority to investigative leads that indicate the possibility of 
identifying or rescuing child victims.

SEC. 4. DUTIES OF THE WORKING GROUP.

    In carrying out the study described in section 3, the working group 
shall--
            (1) develop estimates of the total number of adults in the 
        United States who are committing crimes involving the 
        production, distribution, receipt, or possession of child 
        sexual abuse material, including the number of such individuals 
        who--
                    (A) could be interdicted by Federal, State, and 
                local law enforcement if sufficient funding resources 
                were available; and
                    (B) are committing crimes involving sexual contact 
                with children;
            (2) develop estimates of the total number of minor victims 
        of child sexual abuse in the United States, disaggregated by 
        age range, who--
                    (A) could be located and protected from further 
                abuse through the interdiction of individuals 
                committing offenses described in paragraph (1); or
                    (B) are likely to become victims of contact sexual 
                offenses by adults committing offenses described in 
                paragraph (1), in the 10-year period beginning on the 
                date of enactment of this Act;
            (3) develop estimates and descriptions of the funding, 
        resources, and proactive strategies necessary for Federal, 
        State, and local law enforcement to successfully locate and 
        protect minor victims described in paragraph (2); and
            (4) provide additional analysis and nonduplicative 
        estimates of--
                    (A) the number of adults who were arrested by 
                Federal, State, and local agencies during the 5-year 
                period before the date of enactment of this Act, by 
                year, for any of the offenses described in paragraph 
                (1);
                    (B) the number of adults who were prosecuted 
                federally and in the States during the 5-year period 
                before the date of enactment of this Act, by year, for 
                any of the offenses described in paragraph (1);
                    (C) the estimated number of unidentified victims 
                depicted in child abuse imagery that is known to the 
                National Center for Missing and Exploited Children; and
                    (D) the number and percentage of offenses, as 
                described in paragraph (1) of this section, that are 
                committed by adults in a position of trust or 
                authority, including analysis of potential proactive 
                strategies that could be used by social service 
                agencies and other child abuse investigators to detect 
                both child exploitation and contact sexual offenses by 
                offenders described in paragraph (1).

SEC. 5. MEMBERS OF THE WORKING GROUP.

    (a) In General.--The working group shall be composed of such 
representatives of Federal departments and agencies, non-Federal law 
enforcement agencies, and nongovernmental organizations as the Attorney 
General considers appropriate. The Attorney General shall invite the 
following individuals to be members of the working group:
            (1) Three representatives from State or local grantees of 
        the Internet Crimes Against Children task force program with 
        extensive, direct experience conducting proactive, online 
        undercover investigations, including use of specialized tools 
        for peer-to-peer investigations.
            (2) A representative of the Department of Justice Child 
        Exploitation and Obscenity Section.
            (3) The Department of Justice's National Coordinator for 
        Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction.
            (4) A representative of the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the 
        United States Marshals Service or a designee.
            (5) A Special Agent of the United States Homeland Security 
        Investigations with expertise in proactive online 
        investigations.
            (6) A representative of the Cyber Crimes Center Victim 
        Identification Lab of United States Homeland Security 
        Investigations.
            (7) A Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
        with expertise in proactive online investigations and the use 
        of polygraphs in child sexual abuse material investigations.
            (8) A representative of the Innocent Images program of the 
        Federal Bureau of Investigation with expertise in child victim 
        identification.
            (9) A Special Agent of the United States Secret Service 
        with expertise in investigations of child sexual abuse 
        material.
            (10) A Special Agent of the United States Postal Inspection 
        Service with expertise in investigations of child sexual abuse 
        material.
            (11) At the election of the head of the relevant entity--
                    (A) a representative of the Internet Crimes Against 
                Children and the Child Protection System at the 
                National Criminal Justice Training Center with subject 
                matter expertise on child sexual exploitation and abuse 
                investigations;
                    (B) a representative of the Child Protection System 
                (formerly Operation Fairplay) at the Child Rescue 
                Coalition with subject matter expertise on child sexual 
                exploitation and abuse investigations;
                    (C) a representative of the National Association to 
                Protect Children, with subject matter expertise on 
                child sexual exploitation and abuse;
                    (D) a representative of the National Center for 
                Missing and Exploited Children, with subject matter 
                expertise on child sexual exploitation and abuse; and
                    (E) a representative of the Rape, Abuse & Incest 
                National Network, with subject matter expertise on 
                child sexual exploitation and abuse.
    (b) Continuation of Membership.--If a member of a working group was 
appointed based on membership in an agency or organization and the 
member ceases to be a member of such agency or organization, such 
member shall cease to be a member of the working group on the date on 
which the member ceases to be a member of such agency or organization.
    (c) Terms.--Each member should be appointed for the life of the 
working group.
    (d) Vacancy.--Any member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring 
before the expiration of the term for which the member's predecessor 
was appointed shall be appointed only for the remainder of that term. A 
member may serve after the expiration of that member's term until a 
successor has taken office. A vacancy in the working group shall be 
filled in the manner in which the original appointment was made.
    (e) Compensation.--Members of the working group shall serve without 
pay.
    (f) Quorum.--A simple majority of the members constitutes a quorum, 
but a lesser number may hold hearings.
    (g) Chairperson.--The Chairperson of the working group shall be the 
director of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the 
Department of Justice.
    (h) Meetings.--The working group shall hold virtual meetings 
monthly, and any subgroup of the working group shall hold additional 
meetings as necessary.

SEC. 6. STAFF OF WORKING GROUP; EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.

    (a) Staff.--The Chairperson of the working group may appoint and 
fix the pay of additional personnel as the Chairperson considers 
appropriate.
    (b) Experts and Consultants.--The Chairperson may procure temporary 
and intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United 
States Code.
    (c) Detailees.--Upon request of the Chairperson, the head of any 
Federal department or agency may detail, on a reimbursable basis, any 
of the personnel of that department or agency to the working group to 
assist it in carrying out its duties under this Act.

SEC. 7. POWERS OF WORKING GROUP.

    (a) Hearings and Sessions.--The working group may, for the purpose 
of carrying out this Act, hold hearings, sit and act at times and 
places, take testimony, and receive evidence as the working group 
considers appropriate. The working group may administer oaths or 
affirmations to witnesses appearing before it.
    (b) Powers of Members and Agents.--Any member or agent of the 
working group may, if authorized by the Chairperson, take any action 
which the working group is authorized to take by this section, 
including requesting information and data.
    (c) Obtaining Official Data.--The working group may secure directly 
from any department or agency of the United States information 
necessary to enable it to carry out this Act. Upon request of the 
Chairperson of the working group, the head of that department or agency 
shall furnish that information to the working group.
    (d) Mails.--The working group may use the United States mails in 
the same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and 
agencies of the United States.
    (e) Administrative Support Services.--Upon the request of the 
working group, the Administrator of General Services shall provide to 
the working group, on a reimbursable basis, the administrative support 
services necessary for the working group to carry out its 
responsibilities under this Act.

SEC. 8. REPORT.

    Not later than 210 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the working group shall submit to the Attorney General, the Committees 
on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Senate, and 
the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and 
the Senate, which shall contain a detailed statement of the findings 
and conclusions of the working group, together with its recommendations 
for legislation.

SEC. 9. TERMINATION.

    (a) In General.--The working group shall terminate 120 days after 
submission of the report under section 8, unless the Attorney General 
determines that such termination is not appropriate.
    (b) Reconvening Group.--In the case that the working group 
terminates under subsection (a), the Attorney General may reconvene the 
working group in accordance with this Act.

SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Child sexual abuse material.--The term ``child sexual 
        abuse material'' has the meaning given the term ``child 
        pornography'' in section 2256 of title 18, United States Code.
            (2) Known to law enforcement.--The term ``known to law 
        enforcement'' means a Federal, State, or local law enforcement 
        agency has evidence of a crime that can be attributed to a 
        person or location, including an email address, internet 
        protocol address, screen name, computer global unique 
        identifier, phone number, or other information attributable to 
        that person or location.
            (3) Proactive policing.--The term ``proactive policing'' 
        means specialized, covert, or undercover investigations 
        conducted by law enforcement involving people or organizations 
        that law enforcement authorities have a reasonable suspicion to 
        believe are engaged in criminal activity. For purposes of this 
        Act, such investigations involve cases described under Federal 
        child exploitation laws.
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