I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 436 

To prioritize the fight against human trafficking within the Department 

of State according to congressional intent in the Trafficking Victims 

Protection Act of 2000 without increasing the size of the Federal Government, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 11, 2017 

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself and Ms. MENG) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

A BILL 

To prioritize the fight against human trafficking within the 

Department of State according to congressional intent 

in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 without increasing the size of the Federal Government, and 

for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Human Trafficking 

5 Prioritization Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) The International Labor Organization esti2 mates that nearly 21 million people are subjected to 

3 modern slavery around the world at any given time 

4 and that the majority of the enslaved are women 

5 and girls. 

6 (2) Congress authorized the creation of a De7 partment of State Office to Monitor and Combat 

8 Trafficking in Persons in the Trafficking Victims 

9 Protection Act of 2000 (Division A of Public Law 

10 106–386) in order to directly assist the Secretary of 

11 State in his or her effort to coordinate a United 

12 States Government interagency response to domestic 

13 and international trafficking in persons. 

14 (3) The Office to Monitor and Combat Traf15 ficking in Persons monitors trafficking worldwide 

16 and produces the online and printed versions of the 

17 annual Trafficking in Persons Report, which is Con18 gress’ primary resource for human trafficking re19 porting, analysis, and recommendations on the 

20 United States and 186 countries around the world. 

21 (4) The annual Trafficking in Persons Report 

22 contains tier rankings of each country on which it 

23 reports, and these tier rankings have become an es24 sential diplomatic tool for promoting protection for 


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1 victims, prevention of trafficking, and prosecution of 

2 perpetrators. 

3 (5) Some countries have openly stated, and 

4 many others have confided, that dramatic improve5 ments in the country’s human trafficking record 

6 were directly related to avoidance of a low tier rank7 ing in the annual Trafficking in Persons Report. 

8 (6) Ambassador Mark Lagon, former Ambas9 sador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking 

10 in Persons (2007–2009), testified before the Sub11 committee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human 

12 Rights, and International Organizations of the Com13 mittee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Rep14 resentatives on April 18, 2013, that ‘‘[T]he State 

15 Department does a tremendous job in producing a 

16 report which tells it like it is, offering objective 

17 rankings. Yet at times it pulls punches, typically due 

18 to the urging of regional specialists rather than the 

19 TIP Office’s dedicated experts on trafficking.’’. 

20 (7) Ambassador John Miller, former Ambas21 sador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking 

22 in Persons (2002–2006), recently stated that, ‘‘Up23 grading the status of the Office to a Bureau will not 

24 create additional bureaucracy—it will simply give 

25 JTIP and the Ambassador-at-Large who heads it 


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1 equal standing with regional and functional bureaus 

2 at the State Department. That standing is abso3 lutely essential for the issue to remain a priority, es4 pecially when multiple U.S. interests are engaged.’’. 

5 (8) The tier ranking process authorized by Con6 gress in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 

7 2000 has been in some instances compromised by 

8 the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking subor9 dinate stature within the Department of State. 

10 (9) It is essential for Congress and the Sec11 retary of State to be accurately informed regarding 

12 United States and foreign country successes and 

13 failures in the fight against human trafficking. 

14 (10) The diplomatic power and credibility of the 

15 Trafficking in Persons Report is based on rigorous 

16 scholarship and scrupulous application of the min17 imum standards for the elimination of human traf18 ficking and is undermined by political, rather than 

19 factual, tier rankings. 

20 (11) Strong and effective anti-slavery policy re21 quires that officials from the Office to Monitor and 

22 Combat Trafficking have equal hierarchical standing 

23 with State Department regional bureaus and direct 

24 access to the Secretary of State. 


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1 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

2 It is the sense of Congress that— 

3 (1) the Office to Monitor and Combat Traf4 ficking of the Department of State will be more ef5 fective in carrying out duties mandated by Congress 

6 in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 if 

7 the Office status is changed to that of a Bureau 

8 within the Department hierarchy; 

9 (2) the change in status from Office to Monitor 

10 and Combat Trafficking to a Bureau can be accom11 plished without increasing the number of personnel 

12 or the budget of the current Office; 

13 (3) a Bureau to Monitor and Combat Traf14 ficking would be more effective in carrying out du15 ties mandated by Congress in the Trafficking Vic16 tims Protection Act of 2000 if the Bureau were 

17 headed by an Assistant Secretary with direct access 

18 to the Secretary of State, rather than an Ambas19 sador-at-Large; and 

20 (4) the Secretary of State should review the 

21 current use of the 24 Assistant Secretary positions 

22 authorized by section 1(c)(1) of the State Depart23 ment Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 

24 2651a(c)(1)) and make appropriate revisions, con25 solidations, and eliminations, to ensure that those 

26 positions reflect the highest Departmental needs and 


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1 foreign policy priorities of the United States, includ2 ing efforts to combat trafficking in persons. 

3 SEC. 4. BUREAU TO COMBAT TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 105(e) of the Trafficking 

5 Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7103(e)) is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) in the heading, by striking ‘‘OFFICE TO

8 MONITOR AND COMBAT TRAFFICKING’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘BUREAU TO COMBAT TRAFFICKING IN PER10 SONS’’; 

11 (2) in paragraph (1)— 

12 (A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘Of13 fice to Monitor and Combat Trafficking’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘Bureau to Combat Trafficking in 

15 Persons’’; 

16 (B) in the second sentence, by striking 

17 ‘‘Office’’ and inserting ‘‘Bureau’’; and 

18 (C) in the sixth sentence, by striking ‘‘Of19 fice’’ and inserting ‘‘Bureau’’; and 

20 (3) in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2), by 

21 striking ‘‘Office to Monitor and Combat Traf22 ficking’’ and inserting ‘‘Bureau to Combat Traf23 ficking in Persons’’. 

24 (b) REFERENCE.—Any reference in the Trafficking 

25 Victims Protection Act of 2000 or in any other Act to the 


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1 Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking shall be deemed 

2 to be a reference to the Bureau to Combat Trafficking 

3 in Persons. 

4 SEC. 5. REPORT REGARDING DESIGNATION OF ASSISTANT 

5 SECRETARY OF STATE TO COMBAT TRAF6 FICKING IN PERSONS. 

7 Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact8 ment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit to 

9 the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Rep10 resentatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

11 the Senate a report detailing— 

12 (1) for each current Assistant Secretary of 

13 State position— 

14 (A) the title of that Assistant Secretary of 

15 State; 

16 (B) how long that particular Assistant Sec17 retary designation has been in existence; and 

18 (C) whether that particular Assistant Sec19 retary designation was legislatively mandated or 

20 authorized and, if so, the relevant statutory ci21 tation for such mandate or authorization; and 

22 (2) whether the Secretary intends to designate 

23 one of the Assistant Secretary of State positions au24 thorized by section 1(c)(1) of the State Department 

25 Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 


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1 2651a(c)(1)) as the Assistant Secretary of State to 

2 Combat Trafficking in Persons, and the reasons for 

3 that decision. 

4 SEC. 6. COUNTRIES ON SPECIAL WATCH LIST FOR 4 CON5 SECUTIVE YEARS THAT ARE DOWNGRADED 

6 AND REINSTATED ON SPECIAL WATCH LIST. 

7 Section 110(b)(2) of the Trafficking Victims Protec8 tion Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107(b)(2)) is amended by 

9 adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(F) COUNTRIES ON SPECIAL WATCH LIST

11 FOR 4 CONSECUTIVE YEARS THAT ARE DOWN12 GRADED AND REINSTATED ON SPECIAL WATCH

13 LIST.—Notwithstanding subparagraphs (D) and 

14 (E), a country that— 

15 ‘‘(i) was included on the special watch 

16 list described in subparagraph (A) for 4 

17 consecutive years after the date of the en18 actment of the William Wilberforce Traf19 ficking Victims Protection Reauthorization 

20 Act of 2008; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) was subsequently included on the 

22 list of countries described in paragraph 

23 (1)(C), 


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1 may not thereafter be included on the special 

2 watch list described in subparagraph (A) for 

3 more than 1 consecutive year.’’. 

4 SEC. 7. COST LIMITATION. 

5 No additional funds are authorized to be appro6 priated for ‘‘Diplomatic and Consular Programs’’ to carry 

7 out the provisions of this Act. 

Æ 


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