[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 17115]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PROTECTION REAUTHORIZATION ACT

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, as the end of this Congress quickly 
approaches, I urge the Senate--Republicans, Democrats, and 
Independents--to come together and pass our bipartisan Trafficking 
Victims Protection Reauthorization Act.
  More than a century after the Emancipation Proclamation and despite 
the fact that slavery is now illegal everywhere in the world, modern-
day slavery, or human trafficking, still occurs throughout the world--
including in the United States of America. The Polaris Project 
estimates that there are more than 27 million victims of human 
trafficking worldwide today. To put that in perspective, that is more 
people than the population of Texas.
  The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act is a 
bipartisan bill that was carefully crafted with the input of victims 
and service providers to reflect critical improvements to existing law. 
I have worked hard to try to address concerns expressed by Republican 
Senators and to ensure bipartisan support for this legislation, which 
Congress has reauthorized three times before. The result is that our 
current bill, which was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee 
more than a year ago, now has 54 cosponsors--including 14 Republicans.
  This bipartisan legislation seeks to stop human trafficking at its 
roots by supporting international and domestic efforts to fight against 
the causes and punish the perpetrators of trafficking. It also provides 
critical resources to help support victims as they rebuild their lives. 
We have included new accountability measures to ensure that Federal 
funds are used for their intended purposes, and we have streamlined 
programs to focus scarce resources on the approaches that have been the 
most successful.
  Earlier this week, several Senators spoke on the floor of the Senate 
in commemoration of Human Rights Day. I was pleased to see that Senator 
Rubio, with whom I have worked on this issue, mentioned the need to 
pass our anti-trafficking bill by the end of the year. We agree that it 
is imperative for the Senate to act now so that we can take steps 
toward ending human trafficking and providing the survivors with the 
support they desperately need in order to get back on their feet.
  I have checked with my caucus to see if we can move this bill today. 
I can report that every Democratic Senator has agreed to pass this 
legislation now by unanimous consent. I hope my friends on the other 
side of the aisle will join us to pass the Trafficking Victims 
Protection Reauthorization Act without further delay.
  This is the type of bipartisan bill about an urgent human rights 
issue that should pass by unanimous consent. I hope we can work 
together TODAY to make that happen.
  The United States remains a beacon of hope for so many who face human 
rights abuses. We know that young women and girls--often just 11, 12, 
or 13 years old--are being bought and sold. We know that workers are 
being held and forced into labor against their will. No one should 
further delay action while these injustices continue. I am calling on 
Congress to do the right thing and enact the Trafficking Victims 
Protection Reauthorization Act before the end of this year. Millions of 
people around the world are counting on us and they cannot wait.

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