[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 175 (Tuesday, November 13, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H13582-H13589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
PROTECT OUR CHILDREN ACT OF 2007
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 3845) to establish a Special Counsel for Child
Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction within the Office of the
Deputy Attorney General, to improve the Internet Crimes Against
Children Task Force, to increase resources for regional computer
forensic labs, and to make other improvements to increase the ability
of law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute child
predators, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 3845
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Providing
Resources, Officers, and Technology to Eradicate Cyber
Threats to Our Children Act of 2007'' or the ``PROTECT Our
Children Act of 2007''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
TITLE I--SPECIAL COUNSEL FOR CHILD EXPLOITATION PREVENTION AND
INTERDICTION
Sec. 101. Establishment of special counsel for child exploitation
prevention and interdiction.
Sec. 102. Establishment of National ICAC Task Force Program.
Sec. 103. Purpose of ICAC task forces.
Sec. 104. Duties and functions of task forces.
Sec. 105. National ICAC Data Network Center.
Sec. 106. ICAC grant program.
Sec. 107. Authorization of appropriations.
TITLE II--ADDITIONAL MEASURES TO COMBAT CHILD EXPLOITATION
Sec. 201. Additional regional computer forensic labs.
Sec. 202. Additional field agents for the FBI.
Sec. 203. Immigrations and customs enforcement enhancement.
Sec. 204. Combating trafficking via the United States Postal Service.
Sec. 205. Accountability provisions for child exploitation prevention
and interdiction.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The Internet has facilitated the growth of a multi-
billion dollar global market for images and video of children
being sexually-displayed, raped, and tortured, far exceeding
the capacity of law enforcement to respond at the Federal,
State, and local level.
(2) The explosion of child pornography trafficking is
claiming very young victims. Research by the Department of
Justice, the University of New Hampshire, and the National
Center for Missing and Exploited Children indicates that
among those arrested for possession of child pornography, 83
percent have images of children 6-12 years old, 39 percent
have images of children 3-5 years old, and 19 percent have
images of children under the age of 3 years old.
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(3) The images and videos being trafficked typically depict
sexual assaults that are both graphic and brutal. The
research described in paragraph (2) also indicates that 80
percent of known child pornography possessors have images of
children being sexually penetrated and 21 percent have images
depicting children bound, gagged, blindfolded, or ``otherwise
enduring sadistic sex.'' Just one percent of such possessors
restricted their collecting to images of simple child nudity.
(4) Millions of children and teens in the United States are
at risk from sexual predators who are hunting, stalking, and
luring minors online. Along with the incredible access to the
world offered our children by the Internet, the Internet also
offers the world access to our children.
(5) The Internet Crimes Against Children task forces at the
Department of Justice have identified millions of child
pornography transactions involving images and video of child
sexual assault from millions of computer IP addresses
worldwide.
(6) The ICAC Program has been highly successful in creating
and sustaining an emerging national network of 59 Federal,
State, and local task forces in all 50 States, which form the
backbone of national readiness to combat child exploitation.
(7) In testimony before Congress, law enforcement experts
have expressed consensus that lack of law enforcement
resources, including dedicated forensic analysis capacity, is
a severe problem at the Federal, State, and local level,
severely limiting the number of predators that can be
interdicted and children that can be identified and rescued.
(8) The Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States
Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, and the United States
Postal Inspection Service have each developed highly
specialized and successful child exploitation investigative
capabilities, yet these agencies have testified to Congress
that they must triage the overwhelming number of child
exploitation crimes and cannot investigate a large percentage
of known crimes.
(9) Child pornography and online child enticement crimes
have among the highest conviction rates of any child sexual
offense, and the research funded by the Department of Justice
indicates that the majority of child pornography offenders
have committed or attempted direct sexual contact offenses
against children. Investigating and prosecuting these
predators is one of the most concrete and measurable
strategies for the prevention of future child sexual abuse.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act, the following definitions shall apply:
(1) Child exploitation.--
(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
the term ``child exploitation'' means any conduct, or an
attempt or conspiracy to commit such conduct, constituting
criminal sexual abuse of a minor, sexual exploitation of a
minor, abusive sexual contact of a minor, sexually explicit
conduct with a minor, or any similar offense under Federal or
State law.
(B) Statutory rape exception.--The term ``child
exploitation'' shall not include sexual conduct involving a
minor if--
(i) the minor involved in such conduct has attained 16
years of age or older;
(ii) no other individual involved in such conduct is more
than 4 years older than such minor; and
(iii) such conduct was consensual.
(2) Minor.--The term ``minor'' means any person under the
age of 18 years.
(3) Sexually explicit conduct.--The term ``sexually
explicit conduct'' has the meaning given such term in section
2256 of title 18, United States Code.
TITLE I--SPECIAL COUNSEL FOR CHILD EXPLOITATION PREVENTION AND
INTERDICTION
SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF SPECIAL COUNSEL FOR CHILD
EXPLOITATION PREVENTION AND INTERDICTION.
(a) In General.--The Attorney General shall appoint a
Special Counsel for Child Exploitation Prevention and
Interdiction within the Office of the Deputy Attorney
General.
(b) Duties of the Special Counsel.--The Special Counsel
appointed under subsection (a) shall have the following
duties:
(1) Coordinating the policies and strategies of the
Department of Justice related to the prevention and
investigation of child exploitation cases, including the
policies and strategies of the Office of Justice Programs,
the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice, the
Executive Office of United States Attorneys, the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, and any other agency or bureau of
the Department of Justice whose activities relate to child
exploitation cases.
(2) Pursuing memorandums of understanding or other
interagency agreements related to the prevention,
investigation, and apprehension of individuals exploiting
children, including seeking cooperation and collaboration
with--
(A) United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement;
(B) the Department of State;
(C) the Department of Commerce;
(D) the Department of Education; and
(E) other Federal agencies.
(3) Coordinating and overseeing the ICAC Task Force Program
established under section 102.
(4) Coordinating and overseeing the National Internet
Crimes Against Children Data Network Center established under
section 105.
(5) Reviewing and approving the grants awarded by the ICAC
grant program as administered by the Office of Justice
Programs, including developing and approving the funding
formula established under section 106, after consultation
with the Office of Justice Programs.
(6) Developing, providing, and coordinating technical
assistance and training for Federal, State, local, and tribal
law enforcement agencies related to the prevention,
investigation, and prosecution of child exploitation crimes.
(7) Developing, providing, and coordinating training and
technical assistance to Federal, State, local, and tribal law
enforcement related to forensic computer examination and
analysis.
(8) Developing and overseeing research programs related to
child exploitation prevention.
(9) Directing and overseeing programs for child
exploitation prevention and education, including programs
related to Internet safety.
(10) Maintaining liaison with the judicial branches of the
Federal and State Governments on matters relating to child
exploitation.
(11) Providing information to the President, Congress, the
judiciary, State, local, and tribal governments, and the
general public on matters relating to child exploitation.
(12) Serving, at the request of the Attorney General, as
the representative of the Department of Justice on domestic
task forces, committees, or commissions addressing policies
or issues relating to child exploitation.
(13) Providing technical assistance, coordination,
training, and support to--
(A) other components of the Department of Justice, in
efforts to develop policy and to enforce Federal laws
relating to child exploitation cases, including the
litigation of civil and criminal actions relating to
enforcing such laws;
(B) other Federal, State, local, and tribal agencies, in
efforts to develop policy, provide technical assistance, and
improve coordination among agencies carrying out efforts to
eliminate child exploitation; and
(C) grantees, in efforts to combat child exploitation and
to provide support and assistance to victims of such
exploitation.
(c) Staff.--The Special Counsel appointed under subsection
(a) may hire or appoint such staff as may be required to
carry out the duties described in this section.
SEC. 102. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL ICAC TASK FORCE PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--There is established within the
Department of Justice, under the general authority of the
Attorney General, a National Internet Crimes Against Children
Task Force (hereinafter in this title referred to as the
``ICAC Task Force''), which shall consist of a national
program of State and local law enforcement task forces
dedicated to developing effective responses to online
enticement of children by sexual predators, child
exploitation, and child obscenity and pornography cases.
(b) National Program.--The National ICAC Task Force Program
established under subsection (a) shall include at least one
ICAC task force in each State.
SEC. 103. PURPOSE OF ICAC TASK FORCES.
The National ICAC Task Force Program, and each State or
local ICAC task force that is part of the national program of
task forces, shall be dedicated towards--
(1) increasing the investigative capabilities of State and
local law enforcement officers in the detection,
investigation, and apprehension of Internet crimes against
children offenses or offenders, including technology-
facilitated child exploitation offenses;
(2) conducting proactive and reactive Internet crimes
against children investigations;
(3) providing training and technical assistance to ICAC
task forces and other Federal, State, and local law
enforcement agencies in the areas of investigations,
forensics, prosecution, community outreach, and capacity-
building, using recognized experts to assist in the
development and delivery of training programs;
(4) increasing the number of Internet crimes against
children offenses being investigated and prosecuted in both
Federal and State courts;
(5) creating a multiagency task force response to Internet
crimes against children offenses within each State;
(6) enhancing nationwide responses to Internet crimes
against children offenses, including assisting other ICAC
task forces, as well as other Federal, State, and local
agencies with Internet crimes against children investigations
and prosecutions;
(7) developing and delivering Internet crimes against
children public awareness and prevention programs; and
(8) participating in such other activities, both proactive
and reactive, that will enhance investigations and
prosecutions of Internet crimes against children.
SEC. 104. DUTIES AND FUNCTIONS OF TASK FORCES.
Each State or local ICAC task force that is part of the
national program of task forces shall--
(1) consist of State and local investigators, prosecutors,
forensic specialists, and education specialists who are
dedicated to addressing the goals of such task force;
(2) work consistently towards achieving the purposes
described in section 103;
(3) engage in proactive investigations, forensic
examinations, and effective prosecutions of Internet crimes
against children;
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(4) provide forensic, preventive, and investigative
assistance to parents, educators, prosecutors, law
enforcement, and others concerned with Internet crimes
against children;
(5) develop multijurisdictional, multiagency responses and
partnerships to Internet crimes against children offenses
through ongoing informational, administrative, and
technological support to other State and local law
enforcement agencies, as a means for such agencies to acquire
the necessary knowledge, personnel, and specialized equipment
to investigate and prosecute such offenses;
(6) participate in nationally coordinated investigations in
any case in which the Attorney General determines such
participation to be necessary, as permitted by the available
resources of such task force;
(7) establish or adopt investigative and prosecution
standards, consistent with established norms, to which such
task force shall comply;
(8) investigate, and seek prosecution on, tips related to
Internet crimes against children, including tips from other
law enforcement agencies, ICAC task forces, the National
Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and other Federal,
State, and local agencies;
(9) develop procedures for handling seized evidence;
(10) maintain such reports and records as are required
under this title; and
(11) seek to comply with national standards regarding the
investigation and prosecution of Internet crimes against
children, as set forth by the Attorney General, to the extent
such standards are consistent with the law of the State where
the task force is located.
SEC. 105. NATIONAL ICAC DATA NETWORK CENTER.
(a) In General.--The Attorney General shall establish a
National Internet Crimes Against Children Data Network
Center.
(b) Purpose of Center.--The National Internet Crimes
Against Children Data Network Center established under
subsection (a) shall be dedicated to assisting--
(1) the National ICAC Task Force Program established under
this title; and
(2) Federal, State, local, and tribal agencies
investigating and prosecuting child exploitation.
(c) Mandatory Requirements for Center.--The National
Internet Crimes Against Children Data Network Center
established under subsection (a) shall develop and maintain
an integrated technology and training program that provides--
(1) a secure system enabling online communication and
collaboration by ICAC task forces, Federal law enforcement
agencies, and other State and local law enforcement agencies
regarding ongoing investigations;
(2) a secure, online system for resolving case conflicts,
for use by ICAC task forces, Federal law enforcement
agencies, and other State and local law enforcement agencies;
(3) a secure data storage and analysis system for use by
ICAC task forces, Federal law enforcement agencies, and other
State and local law enforcement agencies;
(4) guidelines for the use of such Data Network by Federal,
State, and local law enforcement agencies; and
(5) training and technical assistance on the use of such
Data Network by Federal, State, and local law enforcement
agencies.
(d) ICAC Data Network Steering Committee.--The Attorney
General shall establish an ICAC Data Network Center Steering
Committee to provide guidance to the Center relating to the
program under subsection (c), and to assist in the
development of strategic plans for the Center. The Steering
Committee shall consist of 9 members with expertise in child
exploitation prevention and interdiction prosecution,
investigation, or prevention, including--
(1) 3 representatives elected by the local directors of the
ICAC task forces;
(2) 1 representative from the law enforcement agency having
primary responsibility for hosting and maintaining the ICAC
Data Network;
(3) 1 representative of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation's Innocent Images National Initiative or
Regional Computer Forensic Lab program;
(4) 1 representative of the Immigration and Customs
Enforcement's Cyber Crimes Center;
(5) 1 representative of the United States Postal Inspection
Service;
(6) 1 representative of the Department of Justice's Child
Exploitation and Obscenity Section or a United States
Attorney's Office; and
(7) 1 representative appointed by the Special Counsel for
Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated for each of the fiscal years 2009 through
2016, $2,000,000 to carry out the provisions of this section,
including for--
(1) the establishment of the National Internet Crimes
Against Children Data Network Center; and
(2) the costs of operating and maintaining such Center.
SEC. 106. ICAC GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--
(1) In general.--The Office of Justice Programs, in
consultation with the Special Counsel for Child Exploitation
Prevention and Interdiction, is authorized to award grants to
State and local ICAC task forces to assist in carrying out
the duties and functions described under section 104.
(2) Formula grants.--
(A) Development of formula.--At least 75 percent of the
total funds appropriated to carry out this section shall be
available to award or otherwise distribute grants pursuant to
a funding formula established by the Office of Justice
Programs, in consultation with the Special Counsel for Child
Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction, in accordance with
the requirements in subparagraph (B).
(B) Formula requirements.--Any formula established by the
Office of Justice Programs, in consultation with the Special
Counsel for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction,
under subparagraph (A) shall--
(i) ensure that each State or local ICAC task force shall,
at a minimum, receive an amount equal to 0.5 percent of the
funds available to award or otherwise distribute grants under
subparagraph (A); and
(ii) take into consideration the following factors:
(I) The population of each State, as determined by the most
recent decennial census performed by the Bureau of the
Census.
(II) The number of investigative leads within the
applicant's jurisdiction generated by the ICAC Data Network,
the Cyber Tipline, and other sources.
(III) The number of criminal cases related to Internet
crimes against children referred to a task force for Federal,
State, or local prosecution.
(IV) The number of successful prosecutions of child
exploitation cases by a task force.
(V) The amount of training, technical assistance, and
public education or outreach by a task force related to the
prevention, investigation, or prosecution of child
exploitation offenses.
(VI) Such other criteria as the Attorney General determines
demonstrate the level of need for additional resources by a
task force.
(3) Distribution of remaining funds based on need.--
(A) In general.--Any funds remaining from the total funds
appropriated to carry out this section after funds have been
made available to award or otherwise distribute formula
grants under paragraph (2)(A) shall be distributed to State
and local ICAC task forces based upon need, as set forth by
criteria established by the Office of Justice Programs, in
consultation with the Special Counsel for Child Exploitation
Prevention and Interdiction. Such criteria shall include the
factors under paragraph (2)(B)(ii).
(B) Matching requirement.--A State or local ICAC task force
shall contribute matching non-Federal funds in an amount
equal to not less than 25 percent of the amount of funds
received by the State or local ICAC task force under
subparagraph (A) of this paragraph. A State or local ICAC
task force that is not able or willing to contribute matching
funds in accordance with this subparagraph shall not be
eligible for funds under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph.
(b) Application.--
(1) In general.--Each State or local ICAC task force
seeking a grant under this section shall submit an
application to the Attorney General at such time, in such
manner, and accompanied by such information as the Attorney
General may reasonably require.
(2) Contents.--Each application submitted pursuant to
paragraph (1) shall--
(A) describe the activities for which assistance under this
section is sought; and
(B) provide such additional assurances as the Attorney
General determines to be essential to ensure compliance with
the requirements of this title.
(c) Allowable Uses.--Grants awarded under this section may
be used to--
(1) hire personnel, investigators, prosecutors, education
specialists, and forensic specialists;
(2) establish and support forensic laboratories utilized in
Internet crimes against children investigations;
(3) support investigations and prosecutions of Internet
crimes against children;
(4) conduct and assist with education programs to help
children and parents protect themselves from Internet
predators;
(5) conduct and attend training sessions related to
successful investigations and prosecutions of Internet crimes
against children; and
(6) fund any other activities directly related to
preventing, investigating, or prosecuting Internet crimes
against children.
(d) Reporting Requirements.--
(1) ICAC reports.--To measure the results of the activities
funded by grants under this section, and to assist the
Attorney General in complying with the Government Performance
and Results Act (Public Law 103-62; 107 Stat. 285), each
State or local ICAC task force receiving a grant under this
section shall, on an annual basis, submit a report to the
Attorney General that sets forth the following:
(A) Staffing levels of the task force, including the number
of investigators, prosecutors, education specialists, and
forensic specialists dedicated to investigating and
prosecuting Internet crimes against children.
(B) Investigation and prosecution performance measures of
the task force, including--
(i) the number of investigations initiated related to
Internet crimes against children;
(ii) the number of arrests related to Internet crimes
against children;
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(iii) the number of prosecutions for Internet crimes
against children, including--
(I) whether the prosecution resulted in a conviction for
such crime; and
(II) the sentence and the statutory maximum for such crime
under State law.
(C) The number of referrals made by the task force to the
United States Attorneys office, including whether the
referral was accepted by the United States Attorney.
(D) Statistics that account for the disposition of
investigations that do not result in arrests or prosecutions,
such as referrals to other law enforcement.
(E) The number of investigative technical assistance
sessions that the task force provided to nonmember law
enforcement agencies.
(F) The number of computer forensic examinations that the
task force completed.
(G) The number of law enforcement agencies participating in
Internet crimes against children program standards
established by the task force.
(2) Report to congress.--Not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall
submit a report to Congress on--
(A) the progress of the development of the ICAC Task Forces
established under this title; and
(B) the number of Federal and State investigations,
prosecutions, and convictions in the prior 12-month period
related to child exploitation.
SEC. 107. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
carry out this title--
(1) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2009;
(2) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2010;
(3) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2011;
(4) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2012;
(5) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2013;
(6) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2014;
(7) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2015; and
(8) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2016.
(b) Availability.--Funds appropriated under subsection (a)
shall remain available until expended.
TITLE II--ADDITIONAL MEASURES TO COMBAT CHILD EXPLOITATION
SEC. 201. ADDITIONAL REGIONAL COMPUTER FORENSIC LABS.
(a) Additional Resources.--The Attorney General shall
establish additional computer forensic capacity to address
the current backlog for computer forensics, including for
child exploitation investigations. The Attorney General may
utilize funds under this title to establish new regional
computer forensic laboratories within the Regional Computer
Forensic Laboratories Program operated by the Federal Bureau
of Investigation or may increase capacity at existing
laboratories.
(b) New Computer Forensic Labs.--If the Attorney General
determines that new regional computer forensic laboratories
are needed under subsection (a) to address existing backlogs,
such new laboratories shall be established pursuant to
subsection (d).
(c) Purpose of New Resources.--The additional forensic
capacity established by the resources provided under this
section shall prioritize its activities to assist Federal
agencies, State and local Internet Crimes Against Children
task forces, and other Federal, State, and local law
enforcement agencies in preventing, investigating, and
prosecuting Internet crimes against children.
(d) Location of New Labs.--The location of any new regional
computer forensic laboratories under this section shall be
determined by the Attorney General, in consultation with the
Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Regional
Computer Forensic Laboratory National Steering Committee, and
other relevant stakeholders.
(e) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, and every year thereafter, the
Attorney General shall submit a report to the Congress on how
the funds appropriated under this section were utilized.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated for fiscal years 2009 through 2016,
$7,000,000 to carry out the provisions of this section.
SEC. 202. ADDITIONAL FIELD AGENTS FOR THE FBI.
(a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
the Attorney General $30,000,000 for each of the fiscal years
2009 through 2016 to fund the hiring of full-time Federal
Bureau of Investigation field agents and associated analysts
and support staff in addition to the number of such employees
serving in those capacities on the date of enactment of this
Act.
(b) Sole Purpose.--The sole purpose of the additional staff
required to be hired under subsection (a) is to work on child
exploitation cases as part of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation's Innocent Images National Initiative.
SEC. 203. IMMIGRATIONS AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT ENHANCEMENT.
(a) Additional Agents.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary of Homeland Security
$15,000,000, for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 2016,
to fund the hiring of full-time agents and associated
analysts and support staff within the Bureau of Immigration
and Customs Enforcement in addition to the number of such
employees serving in those capacities on the date of
enactment of this Act.
(b) Sole Purpose.--The sole purpose of the additional staff
required to be hired under subsection (a) is to work on child
exploitation and child obscenity cases.
SEC. 204. COMBATING TRAFFICKING VIA THE UNITED STATES POSTAL
SERVICE.
(a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
the Postmaster General $5,000,000, for each of the fiscal
years 2009 through 2016, to fund the hiring of full-time
agents and associated analysts and support staff in addition
to the number of such employees serving in those capacities
on the date of enactment of this Act.
(b) Sole Purpose.--The sole purpose of the additional staff
required to be hired under subsection (a) is to work on child
exploitation and child obscenity cases.
SEC. 205. ACCOUNTABILITY PROVISIONS FOR CHILD EXPLOITATION
PREVENTION AND INTERDICTION.
The Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of
Homeland Security and the Postmaster General, shall report to
the Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate and House of
Representatives and any other relevant committee of
jurisdiction, on an annual basis, on the resources (agents,
forensic labs, prosecutors, etc.) being utilized by such
agencies to investigate and prosecute child exploitation and
child obscenity cases, including the resources established
under this title, the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety
Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-248; 120 Stat. 587), and any
other law related to combating child exploitation and child
obscenity.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr.
Goodlatte) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Florida.
General Leave
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from Florida?
There was no objection.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, just last week we learned that police arrested a senior
executive at the National Children's Museum right here in Washington,
DC, for distributing child pornography over the Internet. This headline
floored me, but it is a good example of a problem that has gotten
completely out of control.
The Internet has facilitated an exploding multibillion dollar market
for child pornography. Tragically, the demand for this criminal market
can only be supplied by graphic new images, and these can only be
supplied through the sexual assault of more children. I rise today to
urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3845, the PROTECT Our Children Act
of 2007.
This bill addresses an issue that is central to the goals of Speaker
Nancy Pelosi and the New Direction Congress, and one that should be at
the top of everyone's agenda, the protection of our children. Our
children deserve a future that is healthy, prosperous, safe, and
bright, but our children are vulnerable when they are on line. If this
bill becomes law, we have the potential to save many thousands of
children from sexual abuse and exploitation.
I want to start by thanking my friend and colleague, Joe Barton of
Texas, for working with me on this bipartisan legislation, and for his
counsel, his very good counsel, as the lead Republican sponsor of the
bill.
In the last Congress, Congressman Barton, then the chairman of the
Energy and Commerce Committee, conducted a series of hearings on this
topic. Not only did those hearings expose the dearth of Federal
resources devoted to investigating and prosecuting child exploitation
crimes, but they also brought together an extraordinary group of
parents who formed an organization called the Surviving Parents
Coalition. In June of this year, I had the opportunity to visit with
this very special group of parents.
When I sat down with Mark Lunsford, Erin Runnion, Ed Smart, Marc
Klaas, Mary Kozakiewicz, and other founders of the Surviving Parents
Coalition, I was not prepared for what they had to tell me. They shared
with me their own horrific stories of how their children were abducted
by sexual predators. As we all know, some of these children will never
come home. As the mother of three young children myself, their stories
broke my heart, and as a Member of Congress I felt compelled to act.
What surprised me most about these brave parents was their message
about child pornography and child exploitation. What they said was
this: If you
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want to prevent predators from hurting other children like ours, the
way to do that is to go back through the Internet and get them.
As we learned last month with the apprehension of a child predator in
Las Vegas, Nevada, for the first time we have the technology and the
evidence not only to find these predators, we have the technology to
rescue their victims as well. A 2005 Justice Department study found
that 80 percent of child pornography possessors have images and videos
of children being sexually penetrated. Another 21 percent possess
images of bondage, sadistic abuse, and torture. The children depicted
in these photos are very young. Eighty-three percent of child
pornography possessors have images of children younger than 12, and
another 19 percent possess images of infants and toddlers. There are
even Web sites that provide live pay-per-view rape of very young
children.
Let me be clear. This is not about obscenity or pornography; these
images are crime scene photos, created by a thriving industry that uses
children as a sexual commodity.
{time} 1615
I want to thank Chairman John Conyers for holding a hearing on
Internet predators in October. At that hearing, Special Agent Flint
Waters of the Wyoming State Police, a highly respected child
exploitation investigator, testified that right now there are nearly
500,000 identified individuals in the United States trafficking child
pornography on the Internet. That's half a million people right here in
the United States. And law enforcement knows who they are, and they
know where they are.
But what shocked me the most and what compelled me to get involved in
this issue is that, due to a lack of resources, law enforcement is
investigating less than 2 percent of these known 500,000 individuals.
Less than 2 percent.
What was even more shocking is that it is estimated that if we were
to investigate these cases, we could actually rescue child victims
nearly 30 percent of the time.
It is clear that our current efforts are not working. We need a
national campaign with everyone joining the fight: that means the full
weight of law enforcement, the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children, Congress, the executive branch, parents and victims
advocacy groups and Internet service providers.
Alicia Kozakiewicz, whose testimony at the October Judiciary hearing
moved us all, is a living, breathing reminder of the lives that we can
save. Alicia is not just a victim; she is a survivor.
Alicia told us how over a period of months she was groomed by a 45-
year-old predator pretending to be a teenage girl. When Alicia, who was
13 years old at the time, agreed to meet her cyberfriend in real life,
he kidnapped her from her suburban Pittsburgh driveway and held her
captive in his Virginia dungeon, where he performed unspeakable sexual
acts upon her day after day and broadcast it over the Internet. Just
when Alicia told us she had given up all hope, she was finally rescued
by FBI agents. The FBI found her because the Virginia Internet Crimes
Against Children task force, or ICAC, had the technology to lift the
digital fingerprints of this perpetrator's crime and to discover the
location where he held her captive, chained to the floor.
The PROTECT Our Children Act will help provide the safety net we so
desperately need by creating statutory authority for these highly
successful ICAC task forces which support State and local law
enforcement agencies. It will supplement this local effort with
hundreds of new Federal agents who will be solely dedicated to crimes
against children. It will also provide desperately needed forensic
crime and computer labs so agents can uncover troves of electronic
evidence, locate these perpetrators, and bring them to justice.
Finally, the bill will create a special counsel within the Department
of Justice who will be responsible for planning and coordinating our
child exploitation prosecution efforts across the Federal agencies.
At the October Judiciary Committee hearing, a representative from the
FBI told us two things, Mr. Speaker, that boggled my mind. First, he
told us that the number of agents being exclusively assigned to these
cases is actually shrinking; and, second, that they are giving millions
of dollars that Congress has appropriated to combat child pornography
to programs that have nothing to do with child protection. Should we be
shrinking critical staffing power and diverting badly needed funds at a
time when we are investigating less than 2 percent of known traffickers
of child pornography? We can do better, and we must do better.
Mr. Speaker, the time has come to reorder priorities at the
Department of Justice, and the PROTECT Our Children Act will do just
that. Our mandate here is clear: we must prevent predators from hurting
our children.
Again, I want to thank Ranking Member Barton for his leadership, his
concern, and his compassion for our children and their safety, not just
on this issue but on the Pool Safety bill that we worked together in
the 109th and the 110th Congress, and I truly appreciate his leadership
and effort on this bill and many others.
Mr. Speaker, this is what Congress can do when we come together in a
bipartisan fashion. And maybe it's our children that can be the
catalyst for the change that we need in America.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, the majority has decided to promote
politics rather than fully protecting our Nation's children. In its
last-minute rush to bring bills to the floor, the majority has selected
five bills addressing the problem of sex offenders on the Internet and
Internet safety for children. These bills were never considered by the
Judiciary Committee, never subject to legislative hearings, and never
brought through the markup process.
In addition, the majority failed to address concerns that the
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Justice
Department expressed. To ignore the concerns of these major
stakeholders is no way to legislate when it comes to the safety of our
children.
Why did the majority avoid the Judiciary Committee process? For one
reason, they knew the amendments we would offer at the committee would
gain bipartisan support. Again, avoiding amendments that both parties
would support is no way to protect our children.
Even on the substance, the majority's bills ignore the needs of law
enforcement. At a full committee oversight hearing on October 17, 2007,
the majority heard from law enforcement and the Justice Department
about specific tools needed to protect children. The testimony at the
hearing underscored the need to give law enforcement flexible tools
necessary to protect children and apprehend sex offenders.
Instead of working to produce a strong bill that responds to law
enforcement's requests, the majority has bypassed the normal committee
process and brought an incomplete bill to the floor.
Last Congress we passed landmark child protection legislation, the
Adam Walsh Act of 2006, which combined new tools, new authorities,
additional programs, and important requirements on the registration and
notification requirements for sex offenders. This legislation was
developed through bipartisan cooperation, subject to full Judiciary
Committee markup, extensive testimony on legislative proposals, and
consultation with the NCMEC, and the Justice Department. In stark
contrast, the majority has failed to meet these basic requirements in
developing new child protection legislation.
H.R. 3845 is replete with problems. For example, the bill creates a
super-bureaucratic special counsel in the Justice Department and
charges that counsel with coordinating all child protection efforts
across the Federal Government.
The special prosecutor duplicates existing offices within the
Department of Justice with the expertise to prosecute child crimes
cases and administer the ICAC grant program.
The innumerable responsibilities of this new special prosecutor
require expertise across so many issues, prosecution, policy, and grant
administration,
[[Page H13587]]
just to name a few, that no one person can fulfill this role. The bill
in fact acknowledges this by directing the creation of an entirely new
office within the office of the Deputy Attorney General, creating yet
another layer of bureaucracy in Washington. This eats up precious
resources, rather than sending them to our neighborhoods and
communities.
Moreover, the bill places approval for all ICAC grants with the new
special prosecutor, a role traditionally held by the Office of Justice
Programs. Why? We don't know. We have been presented no evidence to
suggest that the Department's performance in administering grants to
existing ICAC task forces is somehow flawed.
It is sad to see that our children's safety is being sacrificed for
the benefits of a quick press hit. While the bill has some good
provisions, much more could have been done.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield as much time
as he may consume to the distinguished chairman of the Judiciary
Committee, Mr. Conyers.
Mr. CONYERS. I'm hoping that the discussion and the presentation by
my good friend, Mr. Goodlatte, does not indicate that he is opposed to
the substance of this measure and that his remarks were generated
around the process, the procedure, because I'm sure he worked on the
Adam Walsh bill, and here, to me, is another important step forward on
that. And so we look forward to his continued support.
Now, with reference to process, that's a little bit more sensitive
issue, because, you know me, I don't like to bring up things that sound
partisan. But you guys avoided more process in the Judiciary Committee
than we ever have in the 110th Congress. So I've got a long record of
it.
But we don't want to get off the track here. This isn't about
process. But I've got some not-complimentary statistics about the way
we've operated in the past. And I've had good relationships with all
the Republican, it almost seems like forever, chairmen of the Judiciary
Committee that have preceded us for this last 12 years.
But what our floor manager Debbie Wasserman Schultz is talking about
now is something for which there can be no disagreement. We've got to
get these Internet sex predators out of business. And that's what this
measure does. It does it well. I don't know how much more benefited
anybody would be if we had gone any different direction.
We're under a little duress now. We've got measures on top of
measures. The scheduling is getting horrific. But I commend the
gentlelady and the members of the committee on both sides of the aisle
that have worked with her in pursuance of this legislation to get it to
the floor today.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 30 seconds to respond
briefly to the distinguished chairman, for whom I have great respect.
And when bills do go through the process of the Judiciary Committee,
the chairman has been most fair to us on our side of the aisle. And the
previous chairman, Mr. Sensenbrenner on our side of the aisle, was also
very dedicated to fulfilling that process. In fact, that indeed is what
took place with regard to the Adam Walsh legislation, which was moved
through the process of the committee. I only wish the same thing had
been done here. It would have enabled us to have produced a much, much
better piece of legislation that would more effectively protect our
children.
At this time, it is my pleasure to recognize the distinguished
ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Barton), for such time as he may consume.
Mr. BARTON of Texas. I thank the distinguished gentleman from
Virginia, the former chairman of the Agriculture Committee, one of the
senior members of the Judiciary Committee.
I want to, in a somewhat milder vein, share the concerns that Mr.
Goodlatte shared about the process. When I agreed to be the principal
Republican sponsor of this legislation, I asked and was told that there
would be a committee markup in the Judiciary Committee and that there
would be amendments made in order. So I was a little bit surprised last
week to find that this was going to be on the Suspension Calendar and
expressed that surprise to Ms. Wasserman Schultz and her staff.
Having said that, there have been bipartisan discussions,
negotiations. There have been changes made in the bill as originally
introduced. It is a good bill. And I am proud to be the senior
Republican sponsor.
This bill needs to be passed. I will agree with Mr. Goodlatte that
it's not a perfect bill, and I'll agree that had there been a committee
markup or a subcommittee markup and a bipartisan markup amendment
process, some of the issues would have been addressed a little bit
differently. I'll agree with that.
But having said that, let's look at what's positive in the bill. And
let's compare the bill to current law. There are over 3 million images
of child pornography on the Internet right now. Three million. And in
the last Congress, as chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee,
under my direct request as chairman, the Oversight and Investigations
Subcommittee held nine hearings on the problem of Internet child
pornography. And it's more than a problem. It is a vicious, malicious,
virus, viral disease that has the potential to destroy our children.
And at some point in time we have to do something. And this bill, the
PROTECT bill that's before us this afternoon, is a good first start.
We found out in our hearings last year that the various State and
Federal agencies didn't have enough resources. We found out that they
didn't coordinate. And so this bill before us, as my good friend, Mr.
Goodlatte, has pointed out, it does set up a new special counsel office
in the Justice Department. And normally that would probably not be a
good thing to do. But in this case, given the lack of coordination
under current law, at a minimum, I think it's acceptable. And I
personally think that it's commendable.
{time} 1630
We give additional resources. Not one witness in our hearings last
year said that there were sufficient financial resources. The bill
before us authorizes, over the course of the next 8 years, over 1
billion additional dollars to fight this infestation of child
pornography. It sets up an additional $400 million to increase funding
over the next 8 years for the Federal law enforcement agencies: the
FBI's Innocent Images Unit, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and
the United States Postal Service. These are the Federal agencies that
are at the forefront in investigating Internet child pornography.
The bill also authorizes increased funding for new forensic computer
laboratories. One of the things that we found out is that there just
wasn't enough law enforcement laboratory capability in terms of
forensics to track down the information that was being provided by the
agents in the field. This bill recommends and authorizes an additional
$7 million each year for 2008 through 2015 for new national forensic
computer laboratories.
We also found out, as I pointed out, that some of these task forces
that have been set up and are well intentioned simply didn't have the
resources that they needed. So the bill before us authorizes over $600
million over the next 8 years on a staggered basis for these Internet
Crimes Against Children, or ICAC, task forces. That is a huge
improvement over the current situation, and I don't think any Member of
Congress is going to oppose that.
This bill provides additional funding for Federal and State law
enforcement, greater coordination of the overall United States law
enforcement effort at both the State, Federal, and local level. It
establishes a Special Counsel office that I have already talked about.
And I want to comment on that.
I agree with what Mr. Goodlatte said that the current task force in
the current system in terms of allocating resources is doing an
acceptable job. So the Special Counsel will coordinate with them. The
Special Counsel will have the ability to sign off, but it doesn't have
the ability to unilaterally decide where these additional funds are
going to go for the very reasons that Mr. Goodlatte said in his
statement a few minutes ago.
The bill before us brings additional resources that are vitally
needed to the fight against the scourge of child pornography on the
Internet. Almost all of us have children or grandchildren. And
[[Page H13588]]
when you go on the Internet today and you type in www.snowwhite.com,
you may well get a pornographic child pornography site. Now, that's
unacceptable. It's unacceptable to every Member on both sides of the
aisle and both sides of the other body, our friends on the other side
of this Capitol.
This bill before us may not be a perfect bill, but it is time to act.
It is a good start. Anything can be improved.
Again, I respect the process questions that have been raised. I have
some of those same questions about some issues under the committee that
I serve on as jurisdiction. But in this case it really is time to
protect our children. It really is time to move forward. And if we have
a roll call vote, I hope every Member of the House of Representatives
votes ``yes'' on the PROTECT Act because it is a huge step forward in
protecting our children.
I thank my good friend Mr. Goodlatte for yielding to me.
Thank you, Congresswoman Wasserman-Schultz, for your hard work and
dedication to this bill.
Almost 2 years ago, the Energy and Commerce Committee began a wide-
ranging investigation of Internet child pornography. During our
investigation, we had nine hearings and interviewed numerous witnesses
involved in the fight against child sexual exploitation: Federal and
local law enforcement, Federal and local prosecutors, victims,
educators, Internet service providers, and financial institutions.
This investigation helped expose the epidemic that is Internet child
pornography. At that time, we learned that the Internet contained
approximately three million images of child pornography. Law
enforcement testified to the Committee that the images were becoming
increasingly violent in nature, and that the victims in the photos were
getting younger, some as young as 2 years old.
Although law enforcement is working to tackle the epidemic of abuse
that exists on the Internet, their resources are taxed, because
predators around the world are working just as diligently to continue
flooding the Internet with images of child sexual abuse.
I am proud to be the lead cosponsor of the PROTECT Act, because this
bill provides the resources that are so desperately needed by law
enforcement to take the fight to those predators who seek to exploit
and abuse children, often for their own financial gain. We will never
win the battle against the sexual exploitation of children unless we
arm law enforcement with the necessary resources and tools to bring
these predators to justice.
First, the PROTECT Act authorizes, over fiscal years 2008 to 2015,
$400,000,000 in increased funding to the Federal law enforcement
agencies--FBI's Innocent Images Unit, Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, and the United States Postal Service--that are at the
forefront in investigating Internet child pornography. The funding is
directed for the hiring of additional, full-time agents to work child
exploitation cases.
The bill also authorizes increased funding for forensic computer
labs. One of the key findings in the Energy and Commerce Committee's
investigation of Internet child pornography is that law enforcement
investigations were often hampered by the backlog at forensic computer
labs. This backlog sometimes made it difficult for law enforcement to
identify predators or obtain subpoenas in a timely manner--a delay that
endangers the welfare and safety of the victims of Internet child
pornography. To address this problem, the PROTECT Act authorizes
$7,000,000 for fiscal years 2008 to 2015 for new regional forensic
computer labs.
The Energy and Commerce Committee's investigation also found that
just as important as the Federal law enforcement effort against child
pornography is the effort of State and local law enforcement, in
particular, the effort of the state Internet Crimes Against Children,
or ICAC task forces. In fact, 70 percent of the cases involving the
sexual exploitation of children over the Internet are prosecuted at the
state level. While the Department of Justice has provided funding for
these ICACs through a grant program, the funding nowhere near matched
the needs of these state task forces.
Now, through the PROTECT Act, these task forces will finally receive
the support they need. The bill authorizes over $600,000,0000 in new
funding for ICACs over fiscal years 2008 to 2015. I believe the PROTECT
Act's formula for allocating this funding among states strikes the
right balance between ensuring a stable base of funding for the
individual ICACs and giving the Justice Department the flexibility to
direct funds based on need.
Not only does the bill provide additional funding for Federal and
State law enforcement, it also provides greater coordination of the
overall United States law enforcement effort--Federal, State, and
local--to investigate and prosecute child sexual exploitation crimes.
The bill establishes a Special Counsel office within the Justice
Department that is charged with coordinating the efforts and strategy
of the Department of Justice and Federal and State law enforcement
agencies when investigating child exploitation crimes. While I do not
believe that the creation of a new Federal office is always the best
solution to a problem, in this instance, I believe that this office
will help to ensure that the various law enforcement agencies are
receiving the assistance they need and are coordinating their
investigations in a way that ensures their valuable resources are not
being wasted.
This bill brings incredible resources to bear in the fight against
child sexual exploitation. We must ensure that the efforts of predators
are more than matched by an aggressive law enforcement strategy to
bring these criminals to justice. Our children deserve nothing less.
For this reason, I urge my colleagues to support the PROTECT Act and
make the Internet a safer place for our children.
Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Just in response to Mr. Goodlatte regarding the Special Counsel, I
appreciate the comments of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton).
Special Counsel is an essential element to this legislation because
right now you have no less than eight different entities and agencies
that have something to do with the grants and the coordination and the
prosecution and the pursuit of child exploitation crimes and
particularly child pornography.
It is imperative that we have a single go-to entity, a single
leadership position in the Department of Justice to ensure that there
is someone who is responsible to Congress for the accountability, for
the coordination, to make sure that it is elevated to the highest level
of priority at the Department of Justice where clearly right now it is
not.
And I again want to thank my colleague Mr. Barton for working with us
on this legislation. This is an issue that transcends party. It is an
issue that transcends process. When you have 500,000 known individuals
out there pursuing our children on-line, Internet predators, any of our
children could fall victim just by a click of the computer.
Mr. Speaker, I can tell you I have a 4-year-old who goes on-line with
the most basic of Web sites, and you just never know, and we need to
make sure that we have a massive effort to coordinate and put resources
into going after child exploitation and child predators.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support
of H.R. 3485, the PROTECT Our Children Act of 2007, introduced by my
distinguished colleague from Florida, Representative Wasserman Schultz.
This important legislation will protect this Nation's most valuable
resource, its children.
As Chair of the Congressional Children's Caucus, I have been an
outspoken advocate for the protection of our children against all
predators, be it disease, natural disasters, or sexual deviants. While
we may not be able to avoid natural disasters, there is nothing but a
lack of political will and Congressional action that prevents us from
protecting our children from known sexual predators. I am appalled that
while the Department of Justice knows the location of hundreds of
thousands of sexual predators that prey on our Nation's children within
the U.S. at this very moment, the Department of Justice has
consistently refused to take action or ask Congress for help despite
the fact that law enforcement is investigating less than 2 percent of
this criminal activity. I applaud this important piece of legislation
for the accountability it will create by building the largest law
enforcement army ever created for the protection of children.
This issue is not one of obscenity or pornography but rather one of
human rights and this Congress's dedication to protecting them. While
surveillance by the Internet Crimes Against Children, ICAC, Data
Network has provided the Department of Justice with the location of
hundreds of thousands of sexual predators, far too little has been
done. Child pornography must be considered an issue of human rights.
These photos go beyond obscenity or pornography but rather must be
acknowledged for what they are, ``crime scene photos, created by a
thriving industry that uses children as sexual commodities.'' We must
focus on the weapon of these predators, the internet, which has
provided a multi-billion dollar network for child pornography and led
to the additional exploitation of exponential amounts of children.
While the child exploitation industry is global in scale, the
majority of both supply and demand is based right here, within the
United
[[Page H13589]]
States. Due to the lack of attention to this issue by the Department of
Justice, it is hard to quantify the number of child pornography
traffickers that are involved in this gross violation of our children's
rights; the best estimates are that this practice involves 485,000
perpetrators in the United States alone. A 2005 Justice Department
study found that:
80 percent of child pornography possessors have images and videos
depicting sexual penetration.
20 percent of child pornography possessors have images of bondage,
sadistic abuse and torture.
83 percent of child pornography possessors have images of children
aged 6-12.
19 percent of child pornography possessors have images of infants or
toddlers.
Only 1 percent of child pornography possessors restricted their
``collecting'' to images of nude children.
Law enforcement reports of websites providing live ``pay-per-view''
rape of very young children.
Mr. Speaker, we must act now to protect our children from these
atrocities and this legislation is an important first step in doing so.
This bill will increase funding for state and local task forces by
tripling the size of the Internet Crimes Against Children, ICAC,
program in the first year alone, which will support the 46 state and
local task forces that ``have become the backbone of America's war on
child exploitation.'' It further adds hundreds of new Federal agents to
the FBI, ICE, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service who will be charged
with the sole responsibility of working on crimes against children.
This legislation also provides for the creation of new dedicated
forensic crimes labs for America's overwhelmed child exploitation
investigators and provides legal structure and funding for the ICAC
Data Network, which has emerged as a critical asset in the fight
against child pornography and exploitation. Perhaps most significantly,
it will create a new Justice Department Special Prosecutor, a new high-
level office within the Department with sole dedication to combating
child exploitation and the oversight of ICAC Task Force Network.
This legislation is imperative to ensuring the protection of our
Nation's children and engaging in a much needed and long overdue
national war on child pornography. As the Chair of the Congressional
Children's Caucus, a Representative of the people of the United States,
and a mother of two, I am proud to cosponsor this legislation and I
urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation.
Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Speaker, as a cosponsor of the PROTECT Our Children
Act, I am grateful we are considering this legislation today.
This legislation will create a Special Counsel within the Department
of Justice, DoJ, to design and organize the Departments child
exploitation prosecution work.
The bill will also establish grants to inrease the number of Federal
Bureau of Investigation, FBI, agents dedicated to protecting children
and ensure local authorities have funding available to create vigorous
cyber units with well-trained officers.
Having a child exploited is a parent's worst fear. This legislation
will, strengthen our police force to ensure we can track down and
imprison child sex predators.
Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of this legislation.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for
time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) that the House suspend
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3845, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and
nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
____________________