II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1028 

To amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to enable State 

child protective services systems to improve the identification and assessment of child victims of sex trafficking, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 21, 2015 

Mr. PORTMAN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 

to enable State child protective services systems to improve the identification and assessment of child victims 

of sex trafficking, 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 ‘‘Ensuring a Better Re5 sponse for Victims of Child Sex Trafficking’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CAPTA AMENDMENTS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—The amendments to the Child 

8 Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5101 et 


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1 seq.) made by this section shall take effect no later than 

2 the date that is 2 years after the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act. 

4 (b) STATE PLANS.—Section 106 of the Child Abuse 

5 Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a) is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (b)(2)(B)— 

8 (A) in clause (xxii), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

9 the end; and 

10 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(xxiv) provisions and procedures re12 quiring identification and assessment of all 

13 reports involving children known or sus14 pected to be victims of sex trafficking (as 

15 defined in section 103(10) of the Traf16 ficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 

17 U.S.C. 7102 (10))); and 

18 ‘‘(xxv) provisions and procedures for 

19 training child protective services workers 

20 about identifying, assessing, and providing 

21 comprehensive services for children who 

22 are sex trafficking victims, including ef23 forts to coordinate with State law enforce24 ment, juvenile justice, and social service 

25 agencies such as runaway and homeless 


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1 youth shelters to serve this population;’’; 

2 and 

3 (2) in subsection (d), by adding at the end the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(17) The number of children determined to be 

6 victims described in subsection (b)(2)(B)(xxiv).’’. 

7 (c) SPECIAL RULE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 111 of the Child 

9 Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 5106g) is amended— 

11 (A) by striking ‘‘For purposes’’ and insert12 ing the following: 

13 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes’’; and 

14 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULE.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 

17 3(2) and subsection (a)(4), a child shall be consid18 ered a victim of ‘child abuse and neglect’ and of 

19 ‘sexual abuse’ if the child is identified, by a State or 

20 local agency employee of the State or locality in21 volved, as being a victim of sex trafficking (as de22 fined in paragraph (10) of section 103 of the Traf23 ficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 

24 7102)) or a victim of severe forms of trafficking in 


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1 persons described in paragraph (9)(A) of that sec2 tion. 

3 ‘‘(2) STATE OPTION.—Notwithstanding the def4 inition of ‘child’ in section 3(1), a State may elect 

5 to define that term for purposes of the application 

6 of paragraph (1) to section 3(2) and subsection 

7 (a)(4) as a person who has not attained the age of 

8 24.’’. 

9 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 3(2) 

10 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 

11 (42 U.S.C. 5101 note) is amended by inserting ‘‘(in12 cluding sexual abuse as determined under section 

13 111)’’ after ‘‘sexual abuse or exploitation’’. 

14 (3) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Paragraph 

15 (5)(C) of subsection (a), as so designated, of section 

16 111 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment 

17 Act (42 U.S.C. 5106g) is amended by striking ‘‘in18 humane;’’ and inserting ‘‘inhumane.’’. 

Æ 


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