[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 21]
[House]
[Pages 28336-28347]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2005

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 972) to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 
2006 and 2007 for the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, and 
for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                H.R. 972

       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 
     ``Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 
     2005''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.

        TITLE I--COMBATTING INTERNATIONAL TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

Sec. 101. Prevention of trafficking in conjunction with post-conflict 
              and humanitarian emergency assistance.

[[Page 28337]]

Sec. 102. Protection of victims of trafficking in persons.
Sec. 103. Enhancing prosecutions of trafficking in persons offenses.
Sec. 104. Enhancing United States efforts to combat trafficking in 
              persons.
Sec. 105. Additional activities to monitor and combat forced labor and 
              child labor.

          TITLE II--COMBATTING DOMESTIC TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

Sec. 201. Prevention of domestic trafficking in persons.
Sec. 202. Establishment of grant program to develop, expand, and 
              strengthen assistance programs for certain persons 
              subject to trafficking.
Sec. 203. Protection of juvenile victims of trafficking in persons.
Sec. 204. Enhancing State and local efforts to combat trafficking in 
              persons.
Sec. 205. Report to Congress.
Sec. 206. Senior Policy Operating Group.
Sec. 207. Definitions.

              TITLE III--AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS

Sec. 301. Authorizations of appropriations.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) The United States has demonstrated international 
     leadership in combating human trafficking and slavery through 
     the enactment of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 
     2000 (division A of Public Law 106-386; 22 U.S.C. 7101 et 
     seq.) and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization 
     Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-193).
       (2) The United States Government currently estimates that 
     600,000 to 800,000 individuals are trafficked across 
     international borders each year and exploited through forced 
     labor and commercial sex exploitation. An estimated 80 
     percent of such individuals are women and girls.
       (3) Since the enactment of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2000, United States efforts to combat 
     trafficking in persons have focused primarily on the 
     international trafficking in persons, including the 
     trafficking of foreign citizens into the United States.
       (4) Trafficking in persons also occurs within the borders 
     of a country, including the United States.
       (5) No known studies exist that quantify the problem of 
     trafficking in children for the purpose of commercial sexual 
     exploitation in the United States. According to a report 
     issued by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania in 
     2001, as many as 300,000 children in the United States are at 
     risk for commercial sexual exploitation, including 
     trafficking, at any given time.
       (6) Runaway and homeless children in the United States are 
     highly susceptible to being domestically trafficked for 
     commercial sexual exploitation. According to the National 
     Runaway Switchboard, every day in the United States, between 
     1,300,000 and 2,800,000 runaway and homeless youth live on 
     the streets. One out of every seven children will run away 
     from home before the age of 18.
       (7) Following armed conflicts and during humanitarian 
     emergencies, indigenous populations face increased security 
     challenges and vulnerabilities which result in myriad forms 
     of violence, including trafficking for sexual and labor 
     exploitation. Foreign policy and foreign aid professionals 
     increasingly recognize the increased activity of human 
     traffickers in post-conflict settings and during humanitarian 
     emergencies.
       (8) There is a need to protect populations in post-conflict 
     settings and humanitarian emergencies from being trafficked 
     for sexual or labor exploitation. The efforts of aid agencies 
     to address the protection needs of, among others, internally 
     displaced persons and refugees are useful in this regard. 
     Nonetheless, there is a need for further integrated programs 
     and strategies at the United States Agency for International 
     Development, the Department of State, and the Department of 
     Defense to combat human trafficking, including through 
     protection and prevention methodologies, in post-conflict 
     environments and during humanitarian emergencies.
       (9) International and human rights organizations have 
     documented a correlation between international deployments of 
     military and civilian peacekeepers and aid workers and a 
     resulting increase in the number of women and girls 
     trafficked into prostitution in post-conflict regions.
       (10) The involvement of employees and contractors of the 
     United States Government and members of the Armed Forces in 
     trafficking in persons, facilitating the trafficking in 
     persons, or exploiting the victims of trafficking in persons 
     is inconsistent with United States laws and policies and 
     undermines the credibility and mission of United States 
     Government programs in post-conflict regions.
       (11) Further measures are needed to ensure that United 
     States Government personnel and contractors are held 
     accountable for involvement with acts of trafficking in 
     persons, including by expanding United States criminal 
     jurisdiction to all United States Government contractors 
     abroad.

        TITLE I--COMBATTING INTERNATIONAL TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

     SEC. 101. PREVENTION OF TRAFFICKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH POST-
                   CONFLICT AND HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE.

       (a) Amendment.--Section 106 of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7104) is amended by adding 
     at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(h) Prevention of Trafficking in Conjunction With Post-
     Conflict and Humanitarian Emergency Assistance.--The United 
     States Agency for International Development, the Department 
     of State, and the Department of Defense shall incorporate 
     anti-trafficking and protection measures for vulnerable 
     populations, particularly women and children, into their 
     post-conflict and humanitarian emergency assistance and 
     program activities.''.
       (b) Study and Report.--
       (1) Study.--
       (A) In general.--The Secretary of State and the 
     Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
     Development, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, 
     shall conduct a study regarding the threat and practice of 
     trafficking in persons generated by post-conflict and 
     humanitarian emergencies in foreign countries.
       (B) Factors.--In carrying out the study, the Secretary of 
     State and the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development shall examine--
       (i) the vulnerabilities to human trafficking of commonly 
     affected populations, particularly women and children, 
     generated by post-conflict and humanitarian emergencies;
       (ii) the various forms of trafficking in persons, both 
     internal and trans-border, including both sexual and labor 
     exploitation;
       (iii) a collection of best practices implemented to date to 
     combat human trafficking in such areas; and
       (iv) proposed recommendations to better combat trafficking 
     in persons in conjunction with post-conflict reconstruction 
     and humanitarian emergencies assistance.
       (2) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State and the 
     Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
     Development, with the concurrence of the Secretary of 
     Defense, shall transmit to the Committee on International 
     Relations and the Committee on Armed Services of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations and 
     the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate a report that 
     contains the results of the study conducted pursuant to 
     paragraph (1).

     SEC. 102. PROTECTION OF VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS.

       (a) Access to Information.--Section 107(c)(2) of the 
     Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 
     7105(c)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     sentence: ``To the extent practicable, victims of severe 
     forms of trafficking shall have access to information about 
     federally funded or administered anti-trafficking programs 
     that provide services to victims of severe forms of 
     trafficking.''.
       (b) Establishment of Pilot Program for Residential 
     Rehabilitative Facilities for Victims of Trafficking.--
       (1) Study.--
       (A) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the United 
     States Agency for International Development shall carry out a 
     study to identify best practices for the rehabilitation of 
     victims of trafficking in group residential facilities in 
     foreign countries.
       (B) Factors.--In carrying out the study under subparagraph 
     (A), the Administrator shall--
       (i) investigate factors relating to the rehabilitation of 
     victims of trafficking in group residential facilities, such 
     as the appropriate size of such facilities, services to be 
     provided, length of stay, and cost; and
       (ii) give consideration to ensure the safety and security 
     of victims of trafficking, provide alternative sources of 
     income for such victims, assess and provide for the 
     educational needs of such victims, including literacy, and 
     assess the psychological needs of such victims and provide 
     professional counseling, as appropriate.
       (2) Pilot program.--Upon completion of the study carried 
     out pursuant to paragraph (1), the Administrator of the 
     United States Agency for International Development shall 
     establish and carry out a pilot program to establish 
     residential treatment facilities in foreign countries for 
     victims of trafficking based upon the best practices 
     identified in the study.
       (3) Purposes.--The purposes of the pilot program 
     established pursuant to paragraph (2) are to--
       (A) provide benefits and services to victims of 
     trafficking, including shelter, psychological counseling, and 
     assistance in developing independent living skills;
       (B) assess the benefits of providing residential treatment 
     facilities for victims of trafficking, as well as the most 
     efficient and cost-effective means of providing such 
     facilities; and
       (C) assess the need for and feasibility of establishing 
     additional residential treatment facilities for victims of 
     trafficking.
       (4) Selection of sites.--The Administrator of the United 
     States Agency for International Development shall select 2 
     sites at

[[Page 28338]]

     which to operate the pilot program established pursuant to 
     paragraph (2).
       (5) Form of assistance.--In order to carry out the 
     responsibilities of this subsection, the Administrator of the 
     United States Agency for International Development shall 
     enter into contracts with, or make grants to, organizations 
     with relevant expertise in the delivery of services to 
     victims of trafficking.
       (6) Report.--Not later than one year after the date on 
     which the first pilot program is established pursuant to 
     paragraph (2), the Administrator of the United States Agency 
     for International Development shall submit to the Committee 
     on International Relations of the House of Representatives 
     and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report 
     on the implementation of this subsection.
       (7) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Administrator of the United States 
     Agency for International Development to carry out this 
     subsection $2,500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 and 
     2007.

     SEC. 103. ENHANCING PROSECUTIONS OF TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS 
                   OFFENSES.

       (a) Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Over Certain Trafficking 
     in Persons Offenses.--
       (1) In general.--Part II of title 18, United States Code, 
     is amended by inserting after chapter 212 the following new 
     chapter:

``CHAPTER 212A--EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION OVER CERTAIN TRAFFICKING 
                          IN PERSONS OFFENSES

``Sec.
``3271. Trafficking in persons offenses committed by persons employed 
              by or accompanying the Federal Government outside the 
              United States.
``3272. Definitions.

     ``Sec. 3271. Trafficking in persons offenses committed by 
       persons employed by or accompanying the Federal Government 
       outside the United States

       ``(a) Whoever, while employed by or accompanying the 
     Federal Government outside the United States, engages in 
     conduct outside the United States that would constitute an 
     offense under chapter 77 or 117 of this title if the conduct 
     had been engaged in within the United States or within the 
     special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United 
     States shall be punished as provided for that offense.
       ``(b) No prosecution may be commenced against a person 
     under this section if a foreign government, in accordance 
     with jurisdiction recognized by the United States, has 
     prosecuted or is prosecuting such person for the conduct 
     constituting such offense, except upon the approval of the 
     Attorney General or the Deputy Attorney General (or a person 
     acting in either such capacity), which function of approval 
     may not be delegated.

     ``Sec. 3272. Definitions

       ``As used in this chapter:
       ``(1) The term `employed by the Federal Government outside 
     the United States' means--
       ``(A) employed as a civilian employee of the Federal 
     Government, as a Federal contractor (including a 
     subcontractor at any tier), or as an employee of a Federal 
     contractor (including a subcontractor at any tier);
       ``(B) present or residing outside the United States in 
     connection with such employment; and
       ``(C) not a national of or ordinarily resident in the host 
     nation.
       ``(2) The term `accompanying the Federal Government outside 
     the United States' means--
       ``(A) a dependant of--
       ``(i) a civilian employee of the Federal Government; or
       ``(ii) a Federal contractor (including a subcontractor at 
     any tier) or an employee of a Federal contractor (including a 
     subcontractor at any tier);
       ``(B) residing with such civilian employee, contractor, or 
     contractor employee outside the United States; and
       ``(C) not a national of or ordinarily resident in the host 
     nation.''.
       (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of chapters at the 
     beginning of such part is amended by inserting after the item 
     relating to chapter 212 the following new item:

``212A. Extraterritorial jurisdiction over certain trafficking in 
    persons offenses............................................3271''.

       (b) Laundering of Monetary Instruments.--Section 
     1956(c)(7)(B) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) in clause (v), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (2) in clause (vi), by adding ``or'' at the end; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following new clause:
       ``(vii) trafficking in persons, selling or buying of 
     children, sexual exploitation of children, or transporting, 
     recruiting or harboring a person, including a child, for 
     commercial sex acts;''.
       (c) Definition of Racketeering Activity.--Section 
     1961(1)(B) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
     striking ``1581-1591'' and inserting ``1581-1592''.
       (d) Civil and Criminal Forfeitures.--
       (1) In general.--Chapter 117 of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     section:

     ``Sec. 2428. Forfeitures

       ``(a) In General.--The court, in imposing sentence on any 
     person convicted of a violation of this chapter, shall order, 
     in addition to any other sentence imposed and irrespective of 
     any provision of State law, that such person shall forfeit to 
     the United States--
       ``(1) such person's interest in any property, real or 
     personal, that was used or intended to be used to commit or 
     to facilitate the commission of such violation; and
       ``(2) any property, real or personal, constituting or 
     derived from any proceeds that such person obtained, directly 
     or indirectly, as a result of such violation.
       ``(b) Property Subject to Forfeiture.--
       ``(1) In general.--The following shall be subject to 
     forfeiture to the United States and no property right shall 
     exist in them:
       ``(A) Any property, real or personal, used or intended to 
     be used to commit or to facilitate the commission of any 
     violation of this chapter.
       ``(B) Any property, real or personal, that constitutes or 
     is derived from proceeds traceable to any violation of this 
     chapter.
       ``(2) Applicability of chapter 46.--The provisions of 
     chapter 46 of this title relating to civil forfeitures shall 
     apply to any seizure or civil forfeiture under this 
     subsection.''.
       (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new item:

``2428. Forfeitures.''.

     SEC. 104. ENHANCING UNITED STATES EFFORTS TO COMBAT 
                   TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS.

       (a) Appointment to Interagency Task Force to Monitor and 
     Combat Trafficking.--Section 105(b) of the Trafficking 
     Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7103(b)) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking ``the Director of Central Intelligence'' 
     and inserting ``the Director of National Intelligence''; and
       (2) by inserting ``, the Secretary of Defense, the 
     Secretary of Homeland Security'' after ``the Director of 
     National Intelligence'' (as added by paragraph (1)).
       (b) Minimum Standards for the Elimination of Trafficking.--
       (1) Amendments.--Section 108(b) of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7106(b)) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (3), by adding at the end before the 
     period the following: ``, measures to reduce the demand for 
     commercial sex acts and for participation in international 
     sex tourism by nationals of the country, measures to ensure 
     that its nationals who are deployed abroad as part of a 
     peacekeeping or other similar mission do not engage in or 
     facilitate severe forms of trafficking in persons or exploit 
     victims of such trafficking, and measures to prevent the use 
     of forced labor or child labor in violation of international 
     standards''; and
       (B) in the first sentence of paragraph (7), by striking 
     ``persons,'' and inserting ``persons, including nationals of 
     the country who are deployed abroad as part of a peacekeeping 
     or other similar mission who engage in or facilitate severe 
     forms of trafficking in persons or exploit victims of such 
     trafficking,''.
       (2) Effective date.--The amendments made by subparagraphs 
     (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) take effect beginning two years 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act.
       (c) Research.--
       (1) Amendments.--Section 112A of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7109a) is amended--
       (A) in the first sentence of the matter preceding paragraph 
     (1)--
       (i) by striking ``The President'' and inserting ``(a) In 
     General.--The President''; and
       (ii) by striking ``the Director of Central Intelligence'' 
     and inserting ``the Director of National Intelligence'';
       (B) in paragraph (3), by adding at the end before the 
     period the following: ``, particularly HIV/AIDS'';
       (C) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
       ``(4) Subject to subsection (b), the interrelationship 
     between trafficking in persons and terrorism, including the 
     use of profits from trafficking in persons to finance 
     terrorism.
       ``(5) An effective mechanism for quantifying the number of 
     victims of trafficking on a national, regional, and 
     international basis.
       ``(6) The abduction and enslavement of children for use as 
     soldiers, including steps taken to eliminate the abduction 
     and enslavement of children for use as soldiers and 
     recommendations for such further steps as may be necessary to 
     rapidly end the abduction and enslavement of children for use 
     as soldiers.''; and
       (D) by further adding at the end the following new 
     subsections:
       ``(b) Role of Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center.--The 
     research initiatives described in subsection (a)(4) shall be 
     carried out by the Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center 
     (established pursuant to section 7202 of the Intelligence 
     Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-
     458)).
       ``(c) Definitions.--In this section:
       ``(1) AIDS.--The term `AIDS' means the acquired immune 
     deficiency syndrome.

[[Page 28339]]

       ``(2) HIV.--The term `HIV' means the human immunodeficiency 
     virus, the pathogen that causes AIDS.
       ``(3) HIV/AIDS.--The term `HIV/AIDS' means, with respect to 
     an individual, an individual who is infected with HIV or 
     living with AIDS.''.
       (2) Report.--
       (A) In general.--Not later than one year after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Human Smuggling and 
     Trafficking Center (established pursuant to section 7202 of 
     the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 
     (Public Law 108-458)) shall submit to the appropriate 
     congressional committees a report on the results of the 
     research initiatives carried out pursuant to section 112A(4) 
     of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (as added 
     by paragraph (1)(C) of this subsection).
       (B) Definition.--In this paragraph, the term ``appropriate 
     congressional committees'' means--
       (i) the Committee on International Relations and the 
     Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives; 
     and
       (ii) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee 
     on the Judiciary of the Senate.
       (d) Foreign Service Officer Training.--Section 708(a) of 
     the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4028(a)) is 
     amended--
       (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting ``, 
     the Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat 
     Trafficking,'' after ``the International Religious Freedom 
     Act of 1998'';
       (2) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (3) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) instruction on international documents and United 
     States policy on trafficking in persons, including provisions 
     of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (division A 
     of Public Law 106-386; 22 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) which may 
     affect the United States bilateral relationships.''.
       (e) Prevention of Trafficking by Peacekeepers.--
       (1) Inclusion in trafficking in persons report.--Section 
     110(b)(1) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 
     (22 U.S.C. 7107(b)(1)) is amended--
       (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(D) information on the measures taken by the United 
     Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in 
     Europe, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and, as 
     appropriate, other multilateral organizations in which the 
     United States participates, to prevent the involvement of the 
     organization's employees, contractor personnel, and 
     peacekeeping forces in trafficking in persons or the 
     exploitation of victims of trafficking.''.
       (2) Report by secretary of state.--At least 15 days prior 
     to voting for a new or reauthorized peacekeeping mission 
     under the auspices of the United Nations, the North Atlantic 
     Treaty Organization, or any other multilateral organization 
     in which the United States participates (or in an emergency, 
     as far in advance as is practicable), the Secretary of State 
     shall submit to the Committee on International Relations of 
     the House of Representatives, the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations of the Senate, and any other appropriate 
     congressional committee a report that contains--
       (A) a description of measures taken by the organization to 
     prevent the organization's employees, contractor personnel, 
     and peacekeeping forces serving in the peacekeeping mission 
     from trafficking in persons, exploiting victims of 
     trafficking, or committing acts of sexual exploitation or 
     abuse, and the measures in place to hold accountable any such 
     individuals who engage in any such acts while participating 
     in the peacekeeping mission; and
       (B) an analysis of the effectiveness of each of the 
     measures referred to in subparagraph (A).

     SEC. 105. ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES TO MONITOR AND COMBAT FORCED 
                   LABOR AND CHILD LABOR.

       (a) Activities of the Department of State.--
       (1) Finding.--Congress finds that in the report submitted 
     to Congress by the Secretary of State in June 2005 pursuant 
     to section 110(b) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 
     of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107(b)), the list of countries whose 
     governments do not comply with the minimum standards for the 
     elimination of trafficking and are not making significant 
     efforts to bring themselves into compliance was composed of a 
     large number of countries in which the trafficking involved 
     forced labor, including the trafficking of women into 
     domestic servitude.
       (2) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the Director of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking 
     of the Department of State should intensify the focus of the 
     Office on forced labor in the countries described in 
     paragraph (1) and other countries in which forced labor 
     continues to be a serious human rights concern.
       (b) Activities of the Department of Labor.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary of Labor, acting through the 
     head of the Bureau of International Labor Affairs of the 
     Department of Labor, shall carry out additional activities to 
     monitor and combat forced labor and child labor in foreign 
     countries as described in paragraph (2).
       (2) Additional activities described.--The additional 
     activities referred to in paragraph (1) are--
       (A) to monitor the use of forced labor and child labor in 
     violation of international standards;
       (B) to provide information regarding trafficking in persons 
     for the purpose of forced labor to the Office to Monitor and 
     Combat Trafficking of the Department of State for inclusion 
     in trafficking in persons report required by section 110(b) 
     of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 
     7107(b));
       (C) to develop and make available to the public a list of 
     goods from countries that the Bureau of International Labor 
     Affairs has reason to believe are produced by forced labor or 
     child labor in violation of international standards;
       (D) to work with persons who are involved in the production 
     of goods on the list described in subparagraph (C) to create 
     a standard set of practices that will reduce the likelihood 
     that such persons will produce goods using the labor 
     described in such subparagraph; and
       (E) to consult with other departments and agencies of the 
     United States Government to reduce forced and child labor 
     internationally and ensure that products made by forced labor 
     and child labor in violation of international standards are 
     not imported into the United States.

          TITLE II--COMBATTING DOMESTIC TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

     SEC. 201. PREVENTION OF DOMESTIC TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS.

       (a) Program to Reduce Trafficking in Persons and Demand for 
     Commercial Sex Acts in the United States.--
       (1) Comprehensive research and statistical review and 
     analysis of incidents of trafficking in persons and 
     commercial sex acts.--
       (A) In general.--The Attorney General shall use available 
     data from State and local authorities as well as research 
     data to carry out a biennial comprehensive research and 
     statistical review and analysis of severe forms of 
     trafficking in persons, and a biennial comprehensive research 
     and statistical review and analysis of sex trafficking and 
     unlawful commercial sex acts in the United States, and shall 
     submit to Congress separate biennial reports on the findings.
       (B) Contents.--The research and statistical review and 
     analysis under this paragraph shall consist of two separate 
     studies, utilizing the same statistical data where 
     appropriate, as follows:
       (i) The first study shall address severe forms of 
     trafficking in persons in the United States and shall 
     include, but need not be limited to--

       (I) the estimated number and demographic characteristics of 
     persons engaged in acts of severe forms of trafficking in 
     persons; and
       (II) the number of investigations, arrests, prosecutions, 
     and incarcerations of persons engaged in acts of severe forms 
     of trafficking in persons by States and their political 
     subdivisions.

       (ii) The second study shall address sex trafficking and 
     unlawful commercial sex acts in the United States and shall 
     include, but need not be limited to--

       (I) the estimated number and demographic characteristics of 
     persons engaged in sex trafficking and commercial sex acts, 
     including purchasers of commercial sex acts;
       (II) the estimated value in dollars of the commercial sex 
     economy, including the estimated average annual personal 
     income derived from acts of sex trafficking;
       (III) the number of investigations, arrests, prosecutions, 
     and incarcerations of persons engaged in sex trafficking and 
     unlawful commercial sex acts, including purchasers of 
     commercial sex acts, by States and their political 
     subdivisions; and
       (IV) a description of the differences in the enforcement of 
     laws relating to unlawful commercial sex acts across the 
     United States.

       (2) Trafficking conference.--
       (A) In general.--The Attorney General, in consultation and 
     cooperation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, 
     shall conduct an annual conference in each of the fiscal 
     years 2006, 2007, and 2008, and thereafter conduct a biennial 
     conference, addressing severe forms of trafficking in persons 
     and commercial sex acts that occur, in whole or in part, 
     within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States. At 
     each such conference, the Attorney General, or his designee, 
     shall--
       (i) announce and evaluate the findings contained in the 
     research and statistical reviews carried out under paragraph 
     (1);
       (ii) disseminate best methods and practices for enforcement 
     of laws prohibiting acts of severe forms of trafficking in 
     persons and other laws related to acts of trafficking in 
     persons, including, but not limited to, best methods and 
     practices for training State and local law enforcement 
     personnel on the enforcement of such laws;

[[Page 28340]]

       (iii) disseminate best methods and practices for training 
     State and local law enforcement personnel on the enforcement 
     of laws prohibiting sex trafficking and commercial sex acts, 
     including, but not limited to, best methods for investigating 
     and prosecuting exploiters and persons who solicit or 
     purchase an unlawful commercial sex act; and
       (iv) disseminate best methods and practices for training 
     State and local law enforcement personnel on collaborating 
     with social service providers and relevant nongovernmental 
     organizations and establishing trust of persons subjected to 
     commercial sex acts or severe forms of trafficking in 
     persons.
       (B) Participation.--Each annual conference conducted under 
     this paragraph shall involve the participation of persons 
     with expertise or professional responsibilities with 
     relevance to trafficking in persons, including, but not 
     limited to--
       (i) Federal government officials, including law enforcement 
     and prosecutorial officials;
       (ii) State and local government officials, including law 
     enforcement and prosecutorial officials;
       (iii) persons who have been subjected to severe forms of 
     trafficking in persons or commercial sex acts;
       (iv) medical personnel;
       (v) social service providers and relevant nongovernmental 
     organizations; and
       (vi) academic experts.
       (C) Reports.--The Attorney General and the Secretary of 
     Health and Human Services shall prepare and post on the 
     respective Internet Web sites of the Department of Justice 
     and the Department of Health and Human Services reports on 
     the findings and best practices identified and disseminated 
     at the conference described in this paragraph.
       (b) Termination of Certain Grants, Contracts, and 
     Cooperative Agreements.--Section 106(g) of the Trafficking 
     Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7104) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``Cooperative Agreements.--'' and all that 
     follows through ``The President shall'' and inserting 
     ``Cooperative Agreements.--The President shall'';
       (2) by striking ``described in paragraph (2)''; and
       (3) by striking paragraph (2).
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated--
       (1) $2,500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 and 2007 
     to carry out the activities described in subsection 
     (a)(1)(B)(i) and $2,500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 
     and 2007 to carry out the activities described in subsection 
     (a)(1)(B)(ii); and
       (2) $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 through 
     2007 to carry out the activities described in subsection 
     (a)(2).

     SEC. 202. ESTABLISHMENT OF GRANT PROGRAM TO DEVELOP, EXPAND, 
                   AND STRENGTHEN ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS FOR CERTAIN 
                   PERSONS SUBJECT TO TRAFFICKING.

       (a) Grant Program.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services may make grants to States, Indian tribes, units of 
     local government, and nonprofit, nongovernmental victims' 
     service organizations to establish, develop, expand, and 
     strengthen assistance programs for United States citizens or 
     aliens admitted for permanent residence who are the subject 
     of sex trafficking or severe forms of trafficking in persons 
     that occurs, in whole or in part, within the territorial 
     jurisdiction of the United States.
       (b) Selection Factor.--In selecting among applicants for 
     grants under subsection (a), the Secretary shall give 
     priority to applicants with experience in the delivery of 
     services to persons who have been subjected to sexual abuse 
     or commercial sexual exploitation and to applicants who would 
     employ survivors of sexual abuse or commercial sexual 
     exploitation as a part of their proposed project.
       (c) Limitation on Federal Share.--The Federal share of a 
     grant made under this section may not exceed 75 percent of 
     the total costs of the projects described in the application 
     submitted.
       (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated $10,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 
     2006 and 2007 to carry out the activities described in this 
     section.

     SEC. 203. PROTECTION OF JUVENILE VICTIMS OF TRAFFICKING IN 
                   PERSONS.

       (a) Establishment of Pilot Program.--Not later than 180 
     days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
     Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish and 
     carry out a pilot program to establish residential treatment 
     facilities in the United States for juveniles subjected to 
     trafficking.
       (b) Purposes.--The purposes of the pilot program 
     established pursuant to subsection (a) are to--
       (1) provide benefits and services to juveniles subjected to 
     trafficking, including shelter, psychological counseling, and 
     assistance in developing independent living skills;
       (2) assess the benefits of providing residential treatment 
     facilities for juveniles subjected to trafficking, as well as 
     the most efficient and cost-effective means of providing such 
     facilities; and
       (3) assess the need for and feasibility of establishing 
     additional residential treatment facilities for juveniles 
     subjected to trafficking.
       (c) Selection of Sites.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services shall select three sites at which to operate the 
     pilot program established pursuant to subsection (a).
       (d) Form of Assistance.--In order to carry out the 
     responsibilities of this section, the Secretary of Health and 
     Human Services shall enter into contracts with, or make 
     grants to, organizations that--
       (1) have relevant expertise in the delivery of services to 
     juveniles who have been subjected to sexual abuse or 
     commercial sexual exploitation; or
       (2) have entered into partnerships with organizations that 
     have expertise as described in paragraph (1) for the purpose 
     of implementing the contracts or grants.
       (e) Report.--Not later than one year after the date on 
     which the first pilot program is established pursuant to 
     subsection (a), the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
     shall submit to Congress a report on the implementation of 
     this section.
       (f) Definition.--In this section, the term ``juvenile 
     subjected to trafficking'' means a United States citizen, or 
     alien admitted for permanent residence, who is the subject of 
     sex trafficking or severe forms of trafficking in persons 
     that occurs, in whole or in part, within the territorial 
     jurisdiction of the United States and who has not attained 18 
     years of age at the time the person is identified as having 
     been the subject of sex trafficking or severe forms of 
     trafficking in persons.
       (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of the 
     fiscal years 2006 and 2007.

     SEC. 204. ENHANCING STATE AND LOCAL EFFORTS TO COMBAT 
                   TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS.

       (a) Establishment of Grant Program for Law Enforcement.--
       (1) In general.--The Attorney General may make grants to 
     States and local law enforcement agencies to establish, 
     develop, expand, or strengthen programs--
       (A) to investigate and prosecute acts of severe forms of 
     trafficking in persons, and related offenses, which involve 
     United States citizens, or aliens admitted for permanent 
     residence, and that occur, in whole or in part, within the 
     territorial jurisdiction of the United States;
       (B) to investigate and prosecute persons who engage in the 
     purchase of commercial sex acts;
       (C) to educate persons charged with, or convicted of, 
     purchasing or attempting to purchase commercial sex acts; and
       (D) to educate and train law enforcement personnel in how 
     to establish trust of persons subjected to trafficking and 
     encourage cooperation with prosecution efforts.
       (2) Definition.--In this subsection, the term ``related 
     offenses'' includes violations of tax laws, transacting in 
     illegally derived proceeds, money laundering, racketeering, 
     and other violations of criminal laws committed in connection 
     with an act of sex trafficking or a severe form of 
     trafficking in persons.
       (b) Multi-Disciplinary Approach Required.--Grants under 
     subsection (a) may be made only for programs in which the 
     State or local law enforcement agency works collaboratively 
     with social service providers and relevant nongovernmental 
     organizations, including organizations with experience in the 
     delivery of services to persons who are the subject of 
     trafficking in persons.
       (c) Limitation on Federal Share.--The Federal share of a 
     grant made under this section may not exceed 75 percent of 
     the total costs of the projects described in the application 
     submitted.
       (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Attorney General to carry out this 
     section $25,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 and 
     2007.

     SEC. 205. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

       Section 105(d)(7) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 
     of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7103(d)(7)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (2) by redesignating subparagraph (G) as subparagraph (H); 
     and
       (3) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the following new 
     subparagraph:
       ``(G) the amount, recipient, and purpose of each grant 
     under sections 202 and 204 of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2005; and''.

     SEC. 206. SENIOR POLICY OPERATING GROUP.

       Each Federal department or agency involved in grant 
     activities related to combatting trafficking or providing 
     services to persons subjected to trafficking inside the 
     United States shall, as the department or agency determines 
     appropriate, apprise the Senior Policy Operating Group 
     established by section 105(f) of the Victims of Trafficking 
     and Violence Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7103(f)), 
     under the procedures established by the Senior Policy 
     Operating Group, of such activities of the department or 
     agency to ensure that the activities are consistent with the 
     purposes of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 
     (22 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.).

[[Page 28341]]



     SEC. 207. DEFINITIONS.

       In this title:
       (1) Severe forms of trafficking in persons.--The term 
     ``severe forms of trafficking in persons'' has the meaning 
     given the term in section 103(8) of the Trafficking Victims 
     Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102(8)).
       (2) Sex trafficking.--The term ``sex trafficking'' has the 
     meaning given the term in section 103(9) of the Trafficking 
     Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102(9)).
       (3) Commercial sex act.--The term ``commercial sex act'' 
     has the meaning given the term in section 103(3) of the 
     Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 
     7102(3)).

              TITLE III--AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS

     SEC. 301. AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       Section 113 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 
     2000 (22 U.S.C. 7110) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking ``and $5,000,000'' and inserting 
     ``$5,000,000'';
       (B) by adding at the end before the period the following: 
     ``, and $5,500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 and 
     2007''; and
       (C) by further adding at the end the following new 
     sentence: ``In addition, there are authorized to be 
     appropriated to the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking 
     for official reception and representation expenses $3,000 for 
     each of the fiscal years 2006 and 2007.'';
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``2004 and 2005'' and 
     inserting ``2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007'';
       (3) in subsection (c)(1), by striking ``2004 and 2005'' 
     each place it appears and inserting ``2004, 2005, 2006, and 
     2007'';
       (4) in subsection (d), by striking ``2004 and 2005'' each 
     place it appears and inserting ``2004, 2005, 2006, and 
     2007'';
       (5) in subsection (e)--
       (A) in paragraphs (1) and (2), by striking ``2003 through 
     2005'' and inserting ``2003 through 2007''; and
       (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ``$300,000 for fiscal 
     year 2004 and $300,000 for fiscal year 2005'' and inserting 
     ``$300,000 for each of the fiscal years 2004 through 2007'';
       (6) in subsection (f), by striking ``2004 and 2005'' and 
     inserting ``2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007''; and
       (7) by adding at the end the following new subsections:
       ``(h) Authorization of Appropriations to Director of the 
     FBI.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the Director 
     of the Federal Bureau of Investigation $15,000,000 for fiscal 
     year 2006, to remain available until expended, to investigate 
     severe forms of trafficking in persons.
       ``(i) Authorization of Appropriations to the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     to the Secretary of Homeland Security, $18,000,000 for each 
     of the fiscal years 2006 and 2007, to remain available until 
     expended, for investigations by the Bureau of Immigration and 
     Customs Enforcement of severe forms of trafficking in 
     persons.''

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, 5 years ago when Congress passed the Trafficking Victims 
Protection Act of 2000, the United States assumed a leadership role in 
combating the modern-day slavery known as human trafficking. As chief 
sponsor of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, or TVPA, helped 
transform the way governments and the private sector around the world 
respond to human trafficking.
  Enactment of H.R. 972, the reauthorization of the act, will ensure 
that we continue to make progress and significant in-roads. Along with 
many new initiatives, H.R. 972 also reauthorizes appropriations for 
fiscal years 2006 and 2007 for antitrafficking programs of all relevant 
Federal agencies.
  It is worth noting, Mr. Speaker, that in the past 4 years twice as 
many people in the United States have been prosecuted and convicted for 
trafficking than in the prior 4-year period. I would note 
parenthetically in my own State, Christopher Christie, the U.S. 
Attorney, has gone after one group of traffickers after another, 
Russian mobsters and those who have trafficked women in from Latin 
America, and has gotten convictions while simultaneously liberating the 
women from this scourge of modern-day slavery. Worldwide, more than 
3,000 traffickers were convicted last year, a significant increase from 
the previous year. These numbers reflect an increasing number of 
countries adopting the laws necessary to combat trafficking and having 
the political will to implement those laws.
  I would also note that since 2001, more than 800 survivors of 
trafficking in the United States have been found eligible for 
assistance. More than 400 victims have received a T visa. Likewise, in 
many countries, victims--mostly women and young girls--are now 
receiving shelter, job training, and critical medical assistance.
  Just a few weeks ago, my wife and I were in Lima, Peru, and went to a 
trafficking shelter and saw young women who had been trafficked, who 
were now getting life skills, but also getting the kind of medical and 
psychological assistance to get their lives back together again.
  Without a doubt, Mr. Speaker, much has been accomplished; and yet an 
estimated 600,000 to 800,000 people are still being trafficked across 
international borders each and every year. Possibly millions more are 
trafficked internally within the borders of countries.
  Upon enactment, title I of this bill would continue to fight against 
international trafficking. H.R. 972 will put pressure on international 
organizations to implement reforms needed to tackle the unconscionable 
situation of peacekeepers or other international workers being 
complicit in trafficking and sexual exploitation.
  I would point out that on December 6, the OSCE adopted a decision 
calling on States to prevent peacekeepers from being complicit in 
trafficking or abusing in a sexual way the local population. We only 
have to remember what happened in the Congo, where little 13- and 14-
year-old girls were raped by U.N. peacekeepers, and that is as recent 
as just a few months ago. Thankfully, there is a zero tolerance policy 
now; and, hopefully, it will have real meaning in the field.
  Indeed, as confirmed in an October report by Refugees International, 
peacekeeper reform has not been implemented at some U.N. missions in 
places such as Haiti and in Liberia because of a deep-seated culture of 
tolerating sexual exploitation.
  H.R. 972 would also require the annual Trafficking in Persons report 
to include information by groups like the U.N., the OSCE and NATO to 
eliminate involvement in trafficking by any of the organizations' 
personnel. We know we can recount one instance after another where in-
country when they are in a very authoritative position these personnel, 
peacekeeping and non-peacekeeping alike, have exploited the local 
population.
  Under H.R. 972, the Secretary of State would also report to Congress 
before voting for a peacekeeping mission about the measures taken to 
prevent and, if necessary, punish trafficking or sexual exploitation by 
peacekeepers.
  To ensure that our own house is in order, the bill would create 
criminal jurisdiction over Federal employees and contractors for 
trafficking offenses committed overseas while on official business.
  The bill will also focus the State Department, USAID and DOD on 
improving trafficking prevention strategies for post-conflict 
situations and humanitarian emergencies in which indigenous populations 
face a heightened vulnerability to violence.
  The legislation also would amend the criteria used in the annual TIP 
report, or Trafficking in Persons report. The new criteria will include 
consideration of governments' efforts to reduce demand for 
prostitution, to prevent sex tourism, to ensure that peacekeeping 
troops do not exploit trafficking victims, and to prevent forced labor 
or child labor in violation of international standards.
  Unlike transnational cases of trafficking, few governments are yet 
willing to recognize internal trafficking within their own borders. 
Even in the United States, Mr. Speaker, American citizens and nationals 
who are trafficked domestically, often from one State to another, are 
still viewed through the lens of juvenile delinquency, rather than 
victims of crime, worthy of compassion and assistance.
  Title II of H.R. 972 shines a new light on our own domestic 
trafficking problem. Enactment of this bill will begin

[[Page 28342]]

to shift the paradigms so that these exploited girls and women will 
receive assistance that they so desperately need.
  I would like to thank my good friend and colleague, Deborah Pryce for 
her good work on this provision. The gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Pryce) 
was the author of legislation, the End Demand Act, and those provisions 
are in this legislation, mostly intact, and I want to thank her for her 
leadership in doing that. It will make a difference for many American 
girls, mostly the runaways who are then victimized by the traffickers; 
and I certainly appreciate her work on this.
  The bill's domestic provisions, Mr. Speaker, respond to a very real 
need, and I will give my colleagues one example. On December 6, there 
was an article in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that said that Seattle 
has become a major hub on the child trafficking circuit. The article 
states: ``Despite Seattle's extensive network of services for youths, 
there is one 15-bed temporary shelter, it is the only place, other than 
a jail cell, where children trapped in prostitution can find respite, 
albeit brief. There is nothing in the city, or even in Washington 
State, dedicated to helping young people permanently free themselves 
from sex work.''
  We find that is the case all over the country, including my own State 
of New Jersey.
  Having seen this void, again, this legislation responds. It also 
provides money for a pilot program under the Department of Health and 
Human Services to help these victims of trafficking.
  The bill also, Mr. Speaker, enhances State and local efforts through 
grants to encourage the enforcement of antitrafficking and 
antiprostitution laws, re-education programs, modeled after what they 
call ``john schools'' for people arrested for soliciting prostitution, 
and training for law enforcement on how to work compassionately and 
effectively with trafficked persons. All of the funded programs will 
involve collaboration between law enforcement agencies and NGOs.
  Again, I would just like to thank my colleagues on both sides of the 
aisle for their work on this legislation: Chairman Sensenbrenner, who 
marked this legislation up and wrote some very, very good provisions; 
again, I mentioned Chairman Pryce who, again, was so effective in 
getting the domestic language into this bill; Chairman Hunter, Chairman 
Barton, Chairman Hyde, my good friend and colleague, Mr. Lantos, who is 
ever a great friend and colleague when it comes to anything dealing 
with human rights and, in particular, on human trafficking.

                              {time}  1730

  I also want to thank our Republican leadership, particularly Majority 
Leader Blunt and Mike Pence, who were original cosponsors, along with 
almost 100 Members of the House, both sides of the aisle, that have 
joined in to make this legislation possible. I also want to thank a 
number of staff members who were instrumental in getting this bill to 
the floor: Eleanor Nagy, Director of Policy for the Africa, Global 
Human Rights and International Operations Subcommittee of the committee 
I serve as chairman; Maureen Walsh, to my left, General Counsel of the 
OSCE, or Helsinki Commission; Renee Austell; Jack Scharfen; and David 
Abramowitz. Again, David and I worked with Joseph Reese, way back when 
the first bill was enacted, and he did yeomen's work on writing 
provisions and working with us. Dr. King as well for his great work. 
Katy Crooks from the Judiciary Committee. And Cassie Bevin from the 
Majority Leader's Office. There are just so many people who have 
corroborated on this, and I want to thank them for their tremendous 
work.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, 
and I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, once again, this House is considering a measure that 
will demonstrate leadership in the fight to end the heinous act of 
trafficking in human beings, another manifestation of the dark side of 
globalization that has locked thousands of women, children and men into 
sexual and labor bondage.
  This fight has not been without its victories. Over the past 5 years, 
since our House first approved the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 
of 2000, thousands of victims of modern-day slavery have been freed; a 
number of countries have adopted new comprehensive anti-trafficking 
legislation; and countries across the globe have woken up to the 
ravages of this heinous crime.
  The international community, Mr. Speaker, continues to ratchet up the 
pressure on the traffickers, as more and more countries join the 
International Protocol Against Trafficking negotiated at the United 
Nations, with the United States ratifying this critical document 
earlier this month after bipartisan urging by our International 
Relations Committee.
  While we can be proud of what we have accomplished so far on a 
bipartisan basis, it remains the tragic truth that the problem of 
trafficking in persons continues to be a human rights violation of 
extraordinary magnitude. According to our Department of Justice, 
600,000 to 800,000 human beings are sent across national borders every 
year in a state of near or actual slavery, with 15,000 to 20,000 coming 
to our own shores. Mr. Speaker, we must continue to keep the pressure 
on our own government and all governments to address this severe human 
rights violation.
  I want to commend my distinguished colleague from New Jersey (Chris 
Smith) for his extraordinary and persistent work on this most important 
legislation. He is the hero of this bill and deserves unlimited praise. 
The bill provides for increased focus on labor trafficking; it launches 
an initiative in the critical area of child soldiers; establishes new 
programs for Federal-State partnerships in the area of trafficking here 
in our own country; and provides for robust funding of U.S. anti-
trafficking programs.
  Mr. Speaker, let me just say a word about Federal-State cooperation 
in the area of anti-trafficking legislation. Our 2000 Act has spurred 
efforts by State and local governments to take responsibility for doing 
their part to combat this scourge. For example, in California, the 
State legislature recently adopted legislation supported by 
Assemblywoman Sally Lieber and State Senator Sheila Kuehl, with key 
support from San Francisco's outstanding District Attorney Kamala 
Harris, that creates a new State felony for trafficking and provides 
extensive protections to trafficking victims that are unique in the 
United States.
  Mr. Speaker, California's leadership on this has been critical. We 
need to understand that those who are subject to trafficking are not 
criminals but are victims subject to one of the most devastating 
practices that leave them in a permanent state of shock. Some of them 
will never be able to testify against their accusers, and we should not 
expect them to do so.
  I think we must recognize that, here in the United States, this 
devastating human rights abuse can only be contained and then 
eradicated with the help of local enforcement and social service 
agencies which have the contacts in the community to identify 
trafficking victims and criminal rings. Earlier this year, using many 
local contacts in our community, San Francisco District Attorney Harris 
was able to break up a trafficking ring with roots in the Bay area, 
arresting 27 suspects and freeing over 100 innocent victims.
  We need to empower more Kamala Harrises, and for this reason, I fully 
support the provisions of our legislation that provides support to 
State authorities to bring them into the alliance to eliminate 
trafficking. It is the only way we will make real progress in combating 
this scourge.
  Mr. Speaker, I include at this point for the Record a more fulsome 
explanation of the California law.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend the actions of three California 
leaders who have shown great vision, dedication and care in their 
advocacy for victims of human trafficking by passing through the State 
legislature and

[[Page 28343]]

into law the California Trafficking Victims Protection Act, also known 
as Assembly Bill 22. The sons and daughters of the great State of 
California owe a great debt of gratitude to Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, 
State Senator Sheila Kuehl, and San Francisco District Attorney Kamala 
Harris for shepherding through the passage of AB22 earlier this year.
  The bill provides an essential remedy to an ongoing human tragedy. 
Human trafficking is effectively modern-day slavery. It is the forced 
movement of innocent people against their will for the purpose of 
extracting labor from them, usually in the most degrading of duties. 
Victims of this crime against humanity are often coerced into becoming 
workers in the sex trade or in sweatshops. Also, forced domestic and 
agricultural servitude reflect areas where abuse is rampant.
  The extent of the human trafficking epidemic is shocking. The State 
Department estimates that globally well over half a million people, 
most of them women, are traded in such a manner as if they were mere 
property every year. However, the problem is not solely a concern for 
those who conduct the foreign policy of our Nation; there is a notable 
domestic component to the issue as well. A recent report by the Human 
Rights Center at my alma mater, the University of California at 
Berkeley, identified 57 different forced-labor operations in the State 
of California alone during the period between 1998 and 2003, and its 
authors estimate that at any given time there are more than 10,000 such 
victims in our country working under the threat of violence.
  This is the remarkable tragedy that the proponents of AB22 have 
sought so rightfully to address. The most basic function of the bill is 
to designate a special crime in the State penal code for the category 
of human trafficking. Whereas the Federal Government passed the Victims 
of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act in the year 2000, that bill 
only allows for courts to punish traffickers once they have crossed 
State lines.
  While the existing State law used to bind prosecutors' hands by 
forcing them to charge these disgusting crimes under various indirect 
categories such as kidnapping or false imprisonment, the California 
Trafficking Victims Protection Act creates a special State crime that 
is punishable with a minimum of 3 years in jail and directs State law 
enforcement to make human trafficking cases an organizational priority 
along with combating drug trafficking and gang activities.
  The act positions California to be a national leader on this issue. 
Although in recent months a number of other States have passed laws 
designed to close the human trafficking loophole in their penal codes 
at the urging of the Department of Justice--including Minnesota, 
Missouri, Arizona, and Texas--California has passed a far more 
comprehensive bill that surpasses Federal guidelines by providing 
victims of human trafficking with fuller protections under the law.
  The California Trafficking Victims Protection Act establishes a 
victim-caseworker privilege to coax survivors of this brutal crime to 
seek justice. The bill allows victims to bring civil cases against 
their captors, and it includes asset-forfeiture provisions to cut into 
traffickers' profits and take some of the financial incentives out of 
this black-market phenomenon. The bill also provides for a State-
appointed task force to coordinate efforts among nonprofits, law 
enforcement, and victims' groups to fight human trafficking on a 
grassroots level.
  The bill's author, State Assemblywoman Sally Lieber of Mountain View, 
CA, has been committed to fighting human trafficking ever since as a 
city official she was involved in the breakup of a $6 million 
trafficking ring that forced Chinese women to work at illicit massage 
parlors in a form of indentured servitude. Assemblywoman Lieber 
deserves special commendation for her admirable devotion to the fight 
against human trafficking, as does State Senator Sheila Kuehl, who 
helped push the bill through the State's upper legislative body. 
Senator Kuehl played an especially important role in advancing the 
provision for the antitrafficking task force, in my opinion one of the 
most commendable aspects of the new law.
  I would also like to thank San Francisco District Attorney Kamala D. 
Harris for her crucial involvement in this cause as well. Under her 
watch local law enforcement officials unearthed a human trafficking 
network with roots in the Bay Area, in the city of San Francisco alone 
arresting 27 suspects and rescuing over 100 victims, most of whom were 
women who had made their way from South Korea to America in search of 
opportunity and encountered captivity and enslavement instead.
  Ms. Harris also spearheaded a public-relations campaign to raise the 
profile of AB22, elucidating the need to revise our penal codes to 
better confront traffickers and winning the endorsement of the 
California District Attorneys Association for the bill. She properly 
characterized the issue as a matter of ``fundamental women's rights as 
well as human rights,'' issues that, as you know, are quite near and 
dear to my heart, and which I believe are fundamental American values.
  The legislation before us today holds out the hope of helping more 
States to follow California's lead, and to enhance prosecutions against 
trafficking rings. The legislation provides for a program to assist 
States with their trafficking investigations and prosecutions, 
providing critical Federal aid to assist the States efforts. We know 
that the State law enforcement authorities have the contacts in the 
community to ferret out these trafficking rings, as District Attorney 
Harris did in the Bay Area. By bringing Federal resources and expertise 
to bear, we can build on our specialized capacity to curb this scourge.
  Mr. Speaker, most victims of human trafficking--like the exploited 
South Korean women mentioned above to whom my heart goes out--come to 
America in search of a dream and instead find misery and denigration 
where hope had been before. As an immigrant to this great land myself, 
I know the promise of the American dream, and I know this hope they 
hold in their hearts.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend District Attorney Harris, Assemblywoman 
Lieber, and State Senator Kuehl for their heroic efforts to share that 
dream with those among us who truly are the most in need. Our Nation is 
better off thanks to them, and for that I extend to them the most 
heartfelt of thanks. Now let us give them the support they deserve and 
adopt H.R. 972.
  Before reserving my time, Mr. Speaker, I want to pay tribute to David 
Abramowitz of my staff who did extraordinary work on this subject, as 
well as the staff people on the other side who my colleague (Mr. Smith) 
has mentioned.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may 
consume to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Pryce) and recognize her 
great contribution.
  Ms. PRYCE of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Smith so much for 
his leadership on this issue which is so important to both of us. It is 
near and dear to our hearts. I want to express my gratitude and just 
say how grateful I am to have worked with him and Chairman 
Sensenbrenner on the coordination of these efforts to bring this most 
important issue to the floor.
  When I first learned about trafficking in human beings, I could not 
believe that slavery or the slave trade still existed. I remember 
asking, what do you mean women and children and young boys are being 
bought and sold? This is the 21st century; how can this be happening? 
And the answers that I got were very grim.
  I found out from John Miller, the very esteemed Ambassador at the 
State Department's Trafficking in Persons Office, that as many as 
800,000 men, women and children are trafficked across international 
borders every year, including the borders of the United States of 
America.
  The trafficking of people is a $9 billion industry. It has recently 
tied illegal arms dealing as the second fastest growing criminal 
activity in the world. The legislation before us today will increase 
our Nation's ability to bring diplomatic pressure to bear on countries 
who actively or tacitly engage in this heinous practice.
  More than that, however, this legislation reflects our Nation's 
commitment to abolishing the unlawful sexual exploitation of women and 
children and boys occurring within our own borders. A Nation that 
stands for the freedom and dignity of every human being cannot tolerate 
the degradation and exploitation of the innocent occurring on its own 
soil.
  To eradicate sex trafficking in our Nation, we must focus on 
eradicating the demand for sex trafficking, and I am pleased that this 
bipartisan legislation that I authored with my good friend and 
colleague from New York (Mrs. Maloney) has been incorporated into the 
legislation before us today.
  This is not a partisan issue, Mr. Speaker. There is no politics in 
sex trade. And when this body is constantly portrayed as bitterly 
partisan, it is a joy to provide one more example that this is not 
always the case.

[[Page 28344]]

  The End Demand for Sex Trafficking Act has received extraordinary 
support from a diverse and passionate coalition of anti-trafficking and 
human rights organizations. This measure will combat unlawful 
trafficking in this country. For the first time, we are going to 
address demand in our own country.
  The provision in the final measure which will require U.S. embassies 
around the world to report on and monitor countries' efforts to reduce 
the demand for sex trafficking will be a key motivator overseas as 
well, because the results of these investigations will be included in 
the Trafficking in Persons report released by the State Department each 
year for all the world to see and for our own government to use if 
sanctions are required.
  Mr. Speaker, as the President noted in his speech before the United 
Nations General Assembly in 2003, there is a special evil in the abuse 
and exploitation of the most innocent and vulnerable. Today, the House 
will be able to take an important step toward eradicating this special, 
special evil. I urge my colleagues to support this important 
legislation, and thank, once again, the chairman.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield such time as she may 
consume to my good friend and distinguished colleague from New York 
(Mrs. Maloney), who has been a champion on this issue from the day she 
entered the House of Representatives.
  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Lantos for yielding 
me this time, and really thank him for his consistent voice and work 
for human rights across the globe and for his particular focus on 
moving this legislation forward as well as Chairman Smith. And to my 
dear friend and colleague Deborah Pryce, with whom I worked on the End 
Demand for Sex Trafficking Act, which has been incorporated in this 
bill, I thank her for her tenacious, determined persistence in working 
towards bringing this to the floor. I thank you deeply.
  This bill seeks to reduce the demand for sex trafficking by providing 
critical funding to law enforcement to prosecute the demand side, the 
purchasers of commercial sex acts, sex traffickers and exploiters. Sex 
trafficking in people is modern-day slavery, and human trafficking is 
the slavery of the 21st century.
  I had no idea what a huge, huge problem it is: Over 600,000 to 
800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year, 
mostly women and children, and potentially many more are trafficked 
within our own borders. This is a $10 billion worldwide industry and 
the second largest organized crime ring in history.
  On the committee on which my colleague Deborah and I serve, she 
serves as the chair and I as the ranking member, the Domestic and 
International Monetary Policy Subcommittee, we had a series of hearings 
earlier this year on tracing and trying to track the flow of funds that 
are derived from trafficking.
  For many years, I have been working with Equality Now and Attorney 
General Eliot Spitzer to end sex tourism and shut down sex tour 
companies based in New York and in my district. This legislation will 
help stop sex tour operators, like Big Apple Oriental Tours, which is 
based in my district, from advertising and taking sex tourists to 
Thailand, the Philippines and other countries to exploit impoverished 
young girls and boys. We need to protect all people who are being 
manipulated and tricked into entering a life of prostitution, no matter 
where they are from.

                              {time}  1745

  The State Department has been issuing this excellent report, 
Trafficking in Persons report, and it tracks what is happening 
internationally, and it rates what other countries are doing; but we 
cannot focus only on what other countries are doing without working 
with law enforcement to address the problems here in the United States, 
and that is what this bipartisan legislation will do. It will provide 
critical assistance to the victims of sex trafficking, and it will also 
go after the purchasers of commercial sex acts by providing law 
enforcement with grants and with improved tools to fight sex 
trafficking.
  It is important that we protect the victims of the sex trade industry 
and punish the predators and those who are doing this terrible thing.
  Many, many people were part of this passage. I would like to thank 
Lifetime TV, which has highlighted it in programs that they have put on 
TV. They have also championed Ms. Pryce's bill and my bill and started 
a letter-writing campaign in support of it. Oprah Winfrey advocated for 
those who have no voice and started the Stop Child Sex Trafficking, a 
letter-writing campaign in support of this bill.
  I want to thank everyone who has worked on it. I thank the ranking 
member, Mr. Lantos, for yielding me this time and for his extraordinary 
leadership on this and so many other areas, as well as Mr. Bobby Scott 
for all of his hard work.
  Mr. Speaker, I spend a great deal of time working on women's issues. 
The stories I have heard from American girls that have been trafficked 
have been the most heart-wrenching, the most terrible stories I have 
ever heard in my entire life. This bill will save lives. It is 
important. It is will protect young girls and boys. It will go a long 
way toward ending this terrible attack on human dignity; and I include 
for the Record a list of organizations that have come out in support of 
this bill.

       The following groups/individuals have endorsed the end 
     demand for Sex Trafficking Act: AEGIS Foundation; Basic 
     Ministries, International, of Midland, TX; Breaking Free; 
     Coalition Against Trafficking in Women; Concerned Women for 
     America; Dignity House; End Child Prostitution, Child 
     Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes-
     USA, Inc.); Equality Now; Faces of Children; Hudson 
     Institute; Institute on Religion and Democracy; Institute on 
     Religion and Public Policy; Leadership Council for Human 
     Rights; National Association of Evangelicals; Polaris 
     Project; Religious Freedom Coalition; Salvation Army; Shared 
     Hope International; Southern Baptist Convention; Standing 
     Against Global Exploitation (SAGE); Survivor Services and 
     Education NetWork; Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of 
     America; VERONICA'S Voice; World Vision; Professor Donna 
     Hughes; Oprah Winfrey; Lifetime Television.

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the 
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Souder).
  Mr. SOUDER. Mr. Speaker, anyone who has been exposed to this is just 
appalled. And one thing that surprises me is even as our own country 
was lackadaisical on international prostitution for many years and 
would not stand up on international conferences, and as we are 
lackadaisical about looking at the horror of pornography worldwide, we 
are then surprised that there is this huge demand for both young boys 
and young girls in sexual trafficking. We need to understand what some 
of the core issues are that are driving this.
  In the subcommittee I chair, we got involved in a case where USAID 
funded an NGO that was complicit in human trafficking. With one group 
of funds to one NGO from the State Department, they were trying to 
rescue minor girls from a brothel in India. Another NGO funded by our 
tax dollars at USAID interfered in the rescue and ultimately 
facilitated the potential retrafficking of the girls.
  We need legislation like this so we can be the leader in stopping sex 
trafficking and go directly after those agencies in the United States 
that are complicit in this. Lastly, I want to thank our former 
colleague, Linda Smith, for devoting so much of her personal time in 
rescuing these young girls.
  Human trafficking is--plain and simple--modern slavery. The victims 
of human trafficking, by and large, are women and children in extreme 
poverty. They suffer some of the worst crimes imaginable.
  This bill makes the necessary provisions for our country to continue 
as the global leader in fighting human trafficking, and to do what is 
right at every level of government in order to effectively combat the 
scourge of human trafficking.
  This bill effectively ensures that various agencies in our government 
are united in their efforts and armed with appropriate tools to combat 
trafficking in humans. I absolutely do not want to see another 
situation, like that being investigated by the Subcommittee I chair, 
where a USAID-funded NGO is

[[Page 28345]]

complicit in human trafficking. This situation involved the efforts of 
one NGO, with funds from the State Department, trying to rescue minor 
girls from a brothel in India, and another NGO, funded by USAID, 
interfering in the rescue, and ultimately facilitating the potential 
retrafficking of the girls.
  It is critical that the United States and its agencies and programs 
are united in efforts to combat human trafficking. This bill is 
essential for such efforts.
  Among the key provisions of this bill that strengthen our efforts 
against the crime of human trafficking, while also providing necessary 
help for the victims:
  First, it strengthens our efforts to combat sexual exploitation and 
trafficking crimes committed by ``peacekeepers'' in war-torn countries;
  It directs the U.S. Agency for International Development, USAID, to 
establish a pilot program to help victims of trafficking by providing 
residential treatment facilities;
  It authorizes new programs aimed at reducing demand for commercial 
sex while also strengthening law enforcement programs aimed at 
investigating and prosecuting trafficking in persons;
  Includes compassionate, essential, provisions to assist victims of 
human trafficking--those women and children who have seen the worst 
side of humanity--to put their lives back together.
  This bill strengthens existing human trafficking laws by reaching out 
to help the victims with various forms of emotional and material 
support programs, such as providing guardians ad litem for alien 
children who are suspected victims of human trafficking, and providing 
victims with access to legal counsel.
  H.R. 972 gives our law enforcement agencies the tools necessary to 
fight against this terrible crime of human trafficking, domestically 
and internationally.
  The bill also incorporates child protection and trafficking 
prevention activities into USAID, State, and DOD post-conflict, and 
post natural-disaster relief programs, increasing anti-trafficking 
efforts in situations where so many women and children are exploited.
  I commend my colleague, Mr. Chris Smith, for his leadership on this 
important issue. He has done more than anyone I know to bring attention 
to this terrible crime and its victims, and he has been the driving 
force behind efforts to combat human trafficking.
  Mr. Speaker, thank you for bringing this vital legislation to the 
Floor today. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 972, the Trafficking 
Victims Protection Reauthorization Act.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Scott) who has been a leader on this issue in the 
Judiciary Committee.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from 
California for yielding me this time.
  I rise in support of this bill. The trafficking of persons as work 
slaves, sex slaves, or other exploitive and illicit purposes is a 
modern slave trade that occurs all too often around the world, 
including in the United States. Through the Trafficking Victims 
Protection Act of 2000, we have begun a concerted effort around the 
world to address this terrible business of trafficking in persons, 
internationally as well as domestically. We must continue that effort 
by reauthorizing that law by passing H.R. 972.
  At the Judiciary markup of this bill, we added a section to implement 
the essential provisions of H.R. 2012, the End Demand for Sex 
Trafficking Act of 2005, which is designed to more effectively get at 
the issue of domestic trafficking and commercial sex acts in this 
country as part of the overall effort to address domestic trafficking 
in persons.
  For over a year, I have been working with a bipartisan and 
politically diverse group of Members of the House and Senate, along 
with nongovernmental organizations, committed individuals, and others 
to get at an aspect of trafficking in persons in this country that is 
just as pernicious as the trafficking in persons anywhere in the world, 
and that is the brutal pimp system of prostitution of women and young 
girls. The horrific nature and the appalling magnitude of this scourge 
is evident by the following information:
  It is estimated that the number of women and children trapped in 
prostitution in the United States ranges between hundreds of thousands 
to well over a million; the average age of entry into prostitution in 
the United States is estimated to be about 16 years old; nearly 85 
percent of the women and girls in prostitution in the United States 
have a pimp to whom all of the proceeds of their activities go. Among 
these women and girls are some as young as 11. Most are physically 
abused or sexually assaulted; most are controlled by drugs and are 
isolated, confined, and restrained. Many have weapons used against them 
and have death threats against them and their families.
  Pimping is a lucrative criminal practice. Oakland, California, had a 
study just a few years ago where they identified 218 minors ages 11 to 
15 being prostituted by 155 pimps. They found that the average revenue 
was about $200,000 a year for each pimp.
  When we try to get cooperation of other countries to go after sex 
trafficking in their country, some point to our toleration of this 
brutal system of prostitution in this country to suggest that we have 
no moral authority to criticize them. H.R. 972 with the provisions of 
the End Demand Act strikes a crushing blow against this brutal system 
of domestic trafficking in this country; and it is done in a way that 
is most effective, by funding local law enforcement rather than 
creating new Federal crimes that will require us to divert Federal 
assets to this problem. We can fund local law enforcement where it is 
most effective.
  I would like to thank Ms. Pryce of Ohio and Mrs. Maloney of New York, 
the chief sponsors of the End Demand Act; Chairman Sensenbrenner and 
the subcommittee chairman, Mr. Coble; the ranking member, Mr. Conyers; 
Chairman Hyde and the subcommittee chairman, Mr. Smith; Mr. Lantos, the 
ranking member; and the subcommittee ranking member, Mr. Payne, and 
their staffs. My staff person, Bobby Vassar, has been working on this 
extremely hard over the course of at least a year. I thank them for 
their hard work in putting together an End Demand bill and getting its 
provisions in a bill in a form on which we can all agree. I urge my 
colleagues to support the legislation.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Menendez) with mixed feeling because he has made enormous 
contributions to this body over many years, and soon he will be leaving 
us. So while I deeply regret we will not have in the coming years his 
brilliance and insight and energy and dedication, I am pleased we will 
see him across the campus in the other body.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my dear friend and 
distinguished ranking member of the committee. It has been a privilege 
to serve with him under his leadership and all of my colleagues on the 
International Relations Committee. If I miss one thing, it will be 
those Members I have had close associations with in this body, but I 
continue to see in the days ahead.
  I want to thank Congressman Smith for his leadership on this issue. I 
am proud that someone from my home State of New Jersey has dedicated 
himself to ending trafficking of people around the world. I want to 
thank all of my other colleagues collectively because of their 
leadership, countries around the world have been forced to change their 
laws and improve enforcement.
  All of us know the shocking statistics: somewhere between 600 and 800 
people per year are forced across borders to become slaves and 
prostitutes. If we include those who are trafficked within their own 
countries, the numbers are even worse, somewhere between 2 and 4 
million people. The vast majority of these are women and girls. So as 
we fight to end trafficking, we are also fighting for the rights of 
women and girls around the world.
  It is easy to forget that each of those numbers represents a person, 
a daughter, a sister, a mother, or a son who is suffering. It is easy 
to forget that each of these people is part of a family that has been 
torn apart by trafficking, and it is easy to forget that the number of 
individuals trafficked hides the even greater number of families around 
the world devastated by trafficking.
  I am proud to be a cosponsor and strong supporter of this legislation

[[Page 28346]]

which reauthorizes programs designed to attack trafficking both here at 
home and abroad. And in particular, the legislation addresses issues of 
trafficking after natural disasters in postconflict areas.
  As we learned after the devastating tsunami in the Indian Ocean, 
children are among the most vulnerable victims after any disaster and 
conflict. If there are no adults to protect them and take care of them, 
these children become particularly susceptible to disease, hunger, and 
exploitation. In the chaotic environment following a disaster, when 
normal protection mechanisms may be disrupted, unaccompanied children 
are more exposed to traffickers; and that is why I strongly support the 
new focus in this legislation on postconflict and postdisaster areas.
  But this law is not only designed to stop trafficking. It is also 
designed to take care of the victims of trafficking. I cannot imagine 
the pain that someone goes through after being taken away from their 
family, their country, and their life. I cannot imagine how it feels to 
be forced into slavery or prostitution, but I do know that we can and 
we must take action to help these victims as they once again return to 
their lives.
  The pilot programs authorized in this legislation are designed to 
provide a safe haven and rehabilitation for the victims of trafficking. 
We must ensure their success so we can eventually expand them in future 
pieces of legislation.
  Finally, I want to focus our attention on the countries of our own 
hemisphere. I am deeply concerned to see that five of the 14 tier 3 
countries designated by the State Department are from Latin America or 
the Caribbean. These are the countries that are designated as the worse 
violators. They are not even complying with the minimum standards to 
eliminate trafficking. Even worse, they are not making a significant 
effort to be able to change the course of events. So I hope that this 
legislation will have our own hemisphere focused on what they must do 
to stop the hurting and trafficking of their own people.
  Finally, I would remind my colleagues of article 5 of the Universal 
Declaration of Human Rights, which states: ``No one shall be subjected 
to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.'' 
This legislation takes those words and turns them into action. I urge 
all Members to support this important legislation.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of our time to the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), a champion for human rights.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I want to first of all simply 
commend and congratulate Chairman Hyde and Mr. Lantos on their 
leadership of the International Relations Committee. I also commend the 
gentleman from New Jersey for his introduction of this outstanding 
piece of legislation.
  I speak because I have a constituent in my community, a woman named 
Oprah Winfrey, who almost every week sends me a letter talking about 
this issue and urging that Congress must do as much as it can to bring 
some help to those individuals throughout the world who are victimized; 
and so I am strongly in favor of the passage of this bill. I want to 
thank my constituent for keeping me abreast of the issue by at least 
writing me once every week or two about this issue.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  I want to thank all of the Members who have participated in this 
debate, and more importantly, note the work that they did to bring this 
legislation to fruition.
  Let me also point out that the modest sanctions that are in the 
Trafficking Victims Protection Act have yielded significant new laws 
throughout the world. In 2004 alone, 39 countries enacted new laws or 
strengthened existing laws. We know when we put some carrots and 
sticks, the sticks being the possibility of losing nonhumanitarian 
foreign aid, security aid for example, and then when we place countries 
in a ranking system that makes determinations concerning a country's 
achievement in meeting ``minimum standards''--tier 1, tier 2, tier 3, 
and tier 3 being the egregious violators with a new watch list, we get 
their attention. Many countries have taken action and today we work in 
a partnership to try to end trafficking.
  After drugs and weapons, trafficking in human persons is the biggest 
moneymaker for organized crime. The ILO suggested in a June study 
approximately $32 billion a year goes into the coffers of those who are 
committing such nefarious crimes against innocent individuals.
  Finally, I would just say we have in this legislation a provision--a 
study--that seeks to find whether or not there is a nexus between 
terrorism and trafficking.

                              {time}  1800

  With that kind of money flowing into trafficking enterprises, these 
horrific enterprises, we tend to think that there probably is a link 
with terrorism. We do not know. We want to find out.
  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support and as an original 
cosponsor of H.R. 972, the Trafficking Victims Protection 
Reauthorization Act of 2005. As the Ranking Member of the Helsinki 
Commission, let me commend Chairman Chris Smith for all of his hard 
work on this issue both in the United States and around the world. I 
also want to thank International Relations Committee Ranking Member Tom 
Lantos for his strong support.
  In 2000 Congress enacted the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 
(TVRA), which for the first time provided definitive protection for 
victims of human trafficking. Governments estimate that between 600,000 
and 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders every 
year, yielding approximately $10 billion annually in illegal gains. 
When considering internal trafficking within a country, this number 
rises to an estimated 4 million persons.
  Human trafficking destroys families and communities across the world. 
Human trafficking is a modern-day form of slavery, which traps people 
into forced labor or sexual slavery. Human traffickers violate the most 
basic human rights of their victims. The international community must 
oppose human trafficking in all its forms, and work together to 
eradicate this scourge on humanity. I commend the work of the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) for 
addressing this issue in a comprehensive manner, by creating an Action 
Plan to combat trafficking and appointing a Special Representative on 
Combating Trafficking in Human Beings.
  The United States also has a problem with human trafficking as a 
destination country for many trafficking victims, as we heard in a 
recent Helsinki Commission hearing on domestic trafficking. The State 
Department believes that more than 14,500 people are trafficked into 
the U.S. every year, either for forced labor or sexual exploitation and 
slavery. Traffickers bring these victims--mainly women and children--
from all over the globe, including Southeast Asia and the Americas. 
Traffickers often use criminal gangs to transport their human cargo. I 
am pleased that the government has created special ``T'' visas for 
victims of human trafficking who cooperate with law enforcement 
officials.
  In 2003 Congress adopted the Trafficking Victims Protection 
Reauthorization Act, which created a new country ``watch list'' under 
the supervision of the Department of State. This list has had a 
measurable effect on the behavior of offending countries. The State 
Department places the worst offenders on Tier 3 and makes these 
countries subject to certain economic and trade sanctions by the U.S. 
The number of Tier 3 countries has dropped from 27 in 2001 to 14 in 
2005, so we have made measurable progress in raising awareness on this 
issue, but more work needs to be done.
  This legislation will require USAID and the Department of Defense to 
include anti-trafficking policies in post-conflict and humanitarian 
assistance programs. Governments must put in place special measures to 
combat trafficking in countries that do not have a functioning and 
effective central government. This bill would enhance U.S. efforts to 
combat trafficking involving international peacekeepers.
  The bill also authorizes $15 million annually for the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services to carry out a pilot program to establish 
U.S. residential treatment facilities for minors who are victims of 
domestic trafficking. The bill also expands counseling programs for 
victims of severe forms of trafficking. In total, the bill authorizes 
$68 million annually to combat human trafficking and assist victims.

[[Page 28347]]

  We must keep the pressure up on other countries that do little to 
stop human trafficking, by implementing sanctions when needed and by 
using all available diplomatic channels. United States courts need to 
prosecute those individuals who commit these crimes on U.S. soil to the 
full extent of the law, and to send a message that the United States 
does not and will not tolerate human trafficking. I urge my colleagues 
to support this bill.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Davis of Kentucky). The question is on 
the motion offered by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) that 
the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 972, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. 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 question will 
be postponed.

                          ____________________