I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5664 

To amend the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to ensure adequate 

time for the preparation of the annual Trafficking in Persons Report, 

require the timely provision of information to the Office to Monitor 

and Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Bureau of Diplomatic Security of the Department of State regarding the number and location 

of visa denials based, in whole or in part, on grounds related to human 

trafficking, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 21, 2020 

Mr. MCCAUL (for himself and Mr. ENGEL) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the 

Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined 

by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 

within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 

to ensure adequate time for the preparation of the annual Trafficking in Persons Report, require the timely 

provision of information to the Office to Monitor and 

Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Bureau of Diplomatic Security of the Department of State regarding 

the number and location of visa denials based, in whole 

or in part, on grounds related to human trafficking, 

and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Leveraging Informa5 tion on Foreign Traffickers Act’’ or the ‘‘LIFT Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

7 It is the sense of Congress that— 

8 (1) the annual Trafficking In Persons Report 

9 prepared by the Department of State pursuant to 

10 the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (the 

11 ‘‘TIP Report’’) remains one of the most comprehen12 sive, timely, and important sources of information on 

13 human trafficking in the world, and currently in14 cludes 187 individual country narratives; 

15 (2) in January 2019, the statute mandating the 

16 TIP Report was amended to require that each report 

17 must cover efforts and activities occurring within the 

18 period from April 1 of the prior year through March 

19 31 of the current year, which necessarily requires 

20 the collection and transmission of information after 

21 March 31; 

22 (3) ensuring that the Department of State has 

23 adequate time to receive, analyze, and incorporate 

24 trafficking-related information into its annual TrafVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:59 Jan 21, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5664.IH H5664

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1 ficking In Persons Report is important to the quality 

2 and comprehensiveness of that report; 

3 (4) information regarding prevalence and pat4 terns of human trafficking is important for under5 standing the scourge of modern slavery and making 

6 effective decisions about where and how to combat 

7 it; and 

8 (5) United States officials responsible for moni9 toring and combating trafficking in persons around 

10 the world should receive available information re11 garding where and how often United States diplo12 matic and consular officials encounter persons who 

13 are responsible for, or who knowingly benefit from, 

14 severe forms of trafficking in persons. 

15 SEC. 3. ANNUAL DEADLINE FOR TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS 

16 REPORT. 

17 Section 110(b)(1) of the Trafficking Victims Protec18 tion Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107(b)(1)) is amended by 

19 striking ‘‘June 1’’ and inserting ‘‘June 30’’. 

20 SEC. 4. EXTENSION OF ADVISORY COUNCIL ON HUMAN 

21 TRAFFICKING. 

22 Section 115(h) of the Justice for Victims of Traf23 ficking Act of 2015 (Public Law 114–22; 129 Stat. 243) 

24 is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 2021’’ and insert25 ing ‘‘September 30, 2025’’. 


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1 SEC. 5. TIMELY PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO THE OF2 FICE TO MONITOR AND COMBAT TRAF3 FICKING IN PERSONS OF THE DEPARTMENT 

4 OF STATE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 106 of the Trafficking 

6 Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7104) is 

7 amended by adding at the end the following new sub8 section: 

9 ‘‘(l) INFORMATION REGARDING HUMAN TRAF10 FICKING-RELATED VISA DENIALS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State 

12 shall ensure that the Office to Monitor and Combat 

13 Trafficking in Persons and the Bureau of Diplo14 matic Security of the Department of State receive 

15 timely and regular information regarding United 

16 States visa denials based, in whole or in part, on 

17 grounds related to human trafficking. 

18 ‘‘(2) DECISIONS REGARDING ALLOCATION.— 

19 The Secretary of State shall ensure that decisions 

20 regarding the allocation of resources of the Depart21 ment of State related to combating human traf22 ficking and to law enforcement presence at United 

23 States diplomatic and consular posts appropriately 

24 take into account— 

25 ‘‘(A) the information described in para26 graph (1); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the information included in the most 

2 recent report submitted in accordance with sec3 tion 110(b).’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 103 of the 

5 Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 

6 7102) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

7 paragraphs: 

8 ‘‘(18) GROUNDS RELATED TO HUMAN TRAF9 FICKING.—The term ‘grounds related to human traf10 ficking’ means grounds related to the criteria for in11 admissibility to the United States described in sub12 section (a)(2)(H) of section 212 of the Immigration 

13 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182).’’. 

14 SEC. 6. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 

15 (a) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

17 State shall provide to the relevant congressional commit18 tees a report that— 

19 (1) describes the actions that have been taken 

20 and that are planned to implement subsection (l) of 

21 section 106 of the Trafficking Victims Protection 

22 Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7104), as added by section 

23 5 of this Act; and 

24 (2) identifies by country and by United States 

25 diplomatic and consular post the number of visa apVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:59 Jan 21, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5664.IH H5664

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1 plications denied during the previous calendar year 

2 with respect to which the basis for such denial, in3 cluded grounds related to human trafficking (as 

4 such term is defined in section 103 of the Traf5 ficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 

6 7102) (as amended by section 5(b))). 

7 (b) ANNUAL REPORT.—Beginning with the first an8 nual anti-trafficking report required under subsection 

9 (b)(1) of section 110 of the Trafficking Victims Protection 

10 Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107; enacted as division A of 

11 the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 

12 2000) that is submitted after the date of the enactment 

13 of this Act and concurrent with each such subsequent sub14 mission for the following seven years, the Secretary of 

15 State shall submit to the relevant congressional commit16 tees a report that contains information relating to the 

17 number and the locations of United States visa denials 

18 based, in whole or in part, on grounds related to human 

19 trafficking (as such term is defined in section 103 of the 

20 Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 

21 7102) (as amended by section 5(b))) during the period 

22 covered by each such annual anti-trafficking report. 

23 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 

24 In this Act: 


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1 (1) LOCATIONS OF UNITED STATES VISA DENI2 ALS.—The term ‘‘location of United States visa de3 nials’’ means— 

4 (A) the United States diplomatic or con5 sular post at which a denied United States visa 

6 application was adjudicated; and 

7 (B) the city or locality of residence of the 

8 applicant whose visa application was so denied. 

9 (2) RELEVANT CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT10 TEES.—The term ‘‘relevant congressional commit11 tees’’ means— 

12 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 

13 the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

14 Representatives; and 

15 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations 

16 and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Sen17 ate. 

Æ 


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