[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 17876-17877]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 29--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE CONGRESS 
THAT CHILDREN TRAFFICKED IN THE UNITED STATES BE TREATED AS VICTIMS OF 
                     CRIME, AND NOT AS PERPETRATORS

  Mr. HATCH (for himself, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Baucus, Mr. Portman, Mr. 
Wyden, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Enzi, and Mr. Crapo) submitted 
the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary:

                            S. Con. Res. 29

       Whereas, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 
     it is estimated that hundreds of thousands of American 
     children are at risk for commercial sexual exploitation;
       Whereas this risk is even greater for the up to 30,000 
     young people who are emancipated from foster care each year;
       Whereas many of these children are girls previously or 
     currently living in foster care or otherwise involved in the 
     child welfare system;

[[Page 17877]]

       Whereas flaws in the child welfare system in the United 
     States, such as an over-reliance on group homes and barriers 
     to youth engaging in age-appropriate activities, contribute 
     to children's vulnerability to domestic sex trafficking;
       Whereas the average age of entry into sex trafficking for 
     girls is between just 12 and 14 years old;
       Whereas many child sex trafficking victims have experienced 
     previous physical and/or sexual abuse--vulnerabilities that 
     traffickers exploit to lure them into a life of sexual 
     slavery that exposes them to long-term abuse;
       Whereas many child sex trafficking victims are the ``lost 
     girls'', standing around bus stops, in the runaway and 
     homeless youth shelters, advertised online--hidden in plain 
     view; and
       Whereas many child sex trafficking victims who have not yet 
     attained the age of consent are arrested and detained for 
     juvenile prostitution or status offenses directly related to 
     their exploitation: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That the Congress--
       (1) finds that law enforcement, judges, child welfare 
     agencies, and the public should treat children being 
     trafficked for sex as victims of child abuse;
       (2) finds that every effort should be made to arrest and 
     hold accountable both traffickers and buyers of children for 
     sex, in accordance with Federal laws to protect victims of 
     trafficking and State child protection laws against abuse, in 
     order to take all necessary measures to protect our Nation's 
     children from harm;
       (3) supports survivors of domestic sex trafficking, 
     including their efforts to raise awareness of this tragedy 
     and the services they need to heal from the complex trauma of 
     sexual violence and exploitation;
       (4) recognizes that most girls who are bought and sold for 
     sex in the United States have been involved in the child 
     welfare system, which has a responsibility to protect them 
     and requires reform to better prevent domestic child sex 
     trafficking and aid the victims of this tragedy;
       (5) believes that the child welfare system should identify, 
     assess, and provide supportive services to children in its 
     care who are victims of sex trafficking, or at risk of 
     becoming such victims; and
       (6) supports an end to demand for girls by declaring that 
     our Nation's daughters are not for sale and that any person 
     who purchases a child for sex should be appropriately held 
     accountable with the full force of law.

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