II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3758 

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a study 

to assess the unintended impacts on the health and safety of people 

engaged in transactional sex, in connection with the enactment of the 

Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017 

and the loss of interactive computer services that host information related 

to sexual exchange, to direct the Attorney General to submit a report 

on human trafficking investigations and prosecutions in connection with 

the same, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 3, 2022 

Ms. WARREN (for herself, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. SANDERS, and Mr. BOOKER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 

conduct a study to assess the unintended impacts on 

the health and safety of people engaged in transactional 

sex, in connection with the enactment of the Allow States 

and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 

2017 and the loss of interactive computer services that 

host information related to sexual exchange, to direct 

the Attorney General to submit a report on human trafficking investigations and prosecutions in connection with 

the same, 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 ‘‘SESTA/FOSTA Ex5 amination of Secondary Effects for Sex Workers Study 

6 Act’’ or the ‘‘SAFE SEX Workers Study Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 The Congress finds the following: 

9 (1) People who engage in consensual, trans10 actional sex utilize online platforms to protect their 

11 health, safety, and independence. This use includes 

12 building community connections, distribution of 

13 harm reduction information and techniques, identi14 fication and screening of potential clients, sale of 

15 media and remote services and negotiating the terms 

16 of consensual, transactional sex services, including 

17 condom use and other harm reduction strategies. 

18 (2) Widespread discrimination against popu19 lations, including LGBTQIA+ individuals, particu20 larly transgender women of color, prevents many 

21 from accessing formal employment resources, tradi22 tional financial services, and educational opportuni23 ties. 

24 (3) In the 2015 United States Transgender 

25 Survey conducted by the National Center for 


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1 Transgender Equality, 19 percent of respondents re2 ported having exchanged sex for resources, such as 

3 for money, food, or a place to sleep. Transgender 

4 women of color, including Black (42 percent), Amer5 ican Indian (28 percent), multiracial (27 percent), 

6 Latina (23 percent), and Asian (22 percent) re7 spondents were more likely to have participated in 

8 sex work than the overall sample. 

9 (4) In the 2015 United States Transgender 

10 Survey, respondents who experienced homelessness 

11 in the past year (17 percent) were more than 3 

12 times as likely to have participated in sex work dur13 ing that year compared to the overall sample. 

14 (5) On a broader scale, internet platforms fos15 ter connections between people and play an integral 

16 part in American society. Access to digital platforms 

17 has been essential for activists, distribution of harm 

18 reduction information and reproductive and sexual 

19 health information, and fostering connections be20 tween people who face geographic barriers. Meaning21 ful regulation of internet platforms must take into 

22 account the role they play in the health, safety, and 

23 privacy of all people’s lives. 

24 (6) While policymakers, representatives of inter25 net platforms, and some advocates have discussed 


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1 ways to mitigate the use of internet platforms to de2 crease exploitation, people who consensually trade 

3 sex are rarely involved in the drafting of legislation 

4 or policies, or in assessing their impact, despite 

5 being amongst the populations who are impacted by 

6 legislation and policies related to the regulation of 

7 these internet platforms. 

8 (7) On February 27, 2018, the House of Rep9 resentatives passed the Allow States and Victims to 

10 Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017 (com11 monly known as ‘‘SESTA/FOSTA’’). While SESTA/ 

12 FOSTA holds websites liable for user-generated con13 tent that facilitates sex trafficking, it also impacts 

14 online platforms where users discuss consensual sex 

15 work and related topics. 

16 (8) Contemporaneously with the passage of 

17 SESTA/FOSTA in the Senate on March 21, 2018, 

18 websites preemptively shut down, some directly cit19 ing the law’s passage as the rationale for closure. 

20 (9) One week before President Donald Trump 

21 signed SESTA/FOSTA into law, the Department of 

22 Justice seized Backpage.com and arrested Backpage 

23 employees, citing promotion of prostitution and 

24 money laundering charges, similar to the DepartVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:41 Mar 07, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3758.IS S3758

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1 ment of Homeland Security’s seizure of Rentboy.com 

2 only a few years prior. 

3 (10) While these websites and individual ac4 counts have been closing down, there has been no 

5 national investigation rigorously examining the im6 pact of losing access to these platforms on the health 

7 and safety of people in consensual, transactional sex 

8 work. Regional and anecdotal information from 

9 health and safety service providers and sex workers 

10 has pointed to significant impacts on the health and 

11 safety of people who engage in consensual, trans12 actional sex. 

13 (11) Community organizations have reported 

14 increased homelessness of sex workers, including of 

15 sex workers who are caretakers for their families 

16 and have lost the economic stability provided by ac17 cess to online platforms. 

18 (12) Sex workers have reported a reduced abil19 ity to screen potential clients for safety, and nego20 tiate for boundaries such as condom use, resulting in 

21 reports of physical and sexual violence. 

22 (13) Many sex workers have turned to street23 based work, which has historically involved higher 

24 rates of violence than other forms of transactional 

25 sex. Street-based sex workers have frequently noted 


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1 practices which harm their health and safety, such 

2 as the confiscation of condoms by police, or use of 

3 condoms as evidence of arrest for prostitution. 

4 (14) With this new level of precarity, isolation, 

5 and vulnerability, there is substantial anecdotal evi6 dence that members of the sex work community are 

7 more frequently being contacted by third parties 

8 seeking to engage in management activities. This in9 cludes both sex workers who had always worked 

10 independently, as well as those who have previously 

11 experienced violence and exploitation by a third 

12 party. 

13 (15) The Federal Government has long dis14 cussed the importance of assessing collateral con15 sequences when looking at other industries. Com16 prehensive studies are essential to evaluate the im17 pact on human trafficking investigations and pros18 ecutions, and the health and safety of those involved 

19 in consensual, transactional sex, who are increas20 ingly losing access to digital platforms, which have 

21 been used for harm reduction information and tech22 niques, and to screen clients. Informed government 

23 policies begin with seeking out relevant information 

24 to better guide our actions moving forward. 


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1 SEC. 3. STUDY ON UNINTENDED IMPACTS ON HEALTH AND 

2 SAFETY OF PEOPLE ENGAGED IN TRANS3 ACTIONAL SEX AS A RESULT OF THE LOSS OF 

4 CERTAIN ONLINE RESOURCES. 

5 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Health and Human 

6 Services (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), 

7 in consultation, as appropriate, with the Director of the 

8 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Director 

9 of the National Institutes of Health, and the Assistant 

10 Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, shall 

11 study the impacts on the health and safety of people en12 gaged in transactional sex resulting from the loss of access 

13 to interactive computer services (as defined in section 

14 230(f) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

15 230(f))) in connection with the closure of websites (includ16 ing Backpage.com) that host information related to con17 sensual sexual exchange, on or after February 27, 2018, 

18 in anticipation of, or in response to, the enactment of the 

19 Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking 

20 Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–164). 

21 (b) INTERVIEWS AND SURVEYS.—The study under 

22 subsection (a) shall include interviews with, and surveys 

23 conducted by, nonprofit and community-based organiza24 tions that provide direct services to people engaged in 

25 transactional sex. 


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1 (c) TOPICS.—The study under subsection (a) shall in2 clude assessment of the following impacts on people en3 gaged in transactional sex: 

4 (1) Changes in access to technology-related 

5 harm reduction services, including social media serv6 ices. 

7 (2) Changes in ability to negotiate terms with 

8 potential clients. 

9 (3) Changes in experiences of violence from cli10 ents. 

11 (4) Changes in interactions with law enforce12 ment officials, including changes in police surveil13 lance, stops, and arrests. 

14 (5) Changes in contact from third parties. 

15 (6) Changes in relationship to and reliance on 

16 third parties. 

17 (7) Changes in experiences of exploitation and 

18 trafficking. 

19 (8) Impacts on access to economic resources. 

20 (9) Impacts on access to banking and financial 

21 technology tools. 

22 (10) Impacts on homelessness and housing sta23 bility. 

24 (11) Impacts on mental health. 


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1 (12) Impacts on vulnerability to the trans2 mission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infec3 tions. 

4 (13) Changes in participation in other 

5 criminalized behavior. 

6 (14) Disparities in the effects described in 

7 paragraphs (1) through (13) on key populations 

8 typically underserved by service providers, including 

9 LGBTQIA+ individuals, people living in rural areas, 

10 racial and ethnic minorities, Tribal communities, 

11 people experiencing exploitation and trafficking, and 

12 undocumented and documented foreign nationals. 

13 (15) Any other impacts on people engaged in 

14 transactional sex, as determined appropriate by the 

15 Secretary. 

16 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

17 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 

18 Congress a report on the results of the study under sub19 section (a) and make such report available to the public. 

20 SEC. 4. REPORT ON IMPACTS ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING AS 

21 A RESULT OF THE LOSS OF CERTAIN ONLINE 

22 RESOURCES. 

23 (a) REPORT.—The Attorney General shall report on 

24 the impacts on human trafficking investigations and pros25 ecutions resulting from the loss of access to interactive 


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1 computer services (as defined in section 230(f) of the 

2 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230(f))) in con3 nection with the closure of websites (including 

4 Backpage.com) that host information related to consen5 sual sexual exchange, on or after February 27, 2018, in 

6 anticipation of, or in response to, the enactment of the 

7 Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking 

8 Act of 2017 (Public Law 115–164). 

9 (b) INTERVIEWS AND SURVEYS.—The report under 

10 subsection (a) shall include interviews with nonprofit and 

11 community-based organizations that provide direct serv12 ices to survivors of human trafficking or people engaged 

13 in transactional sex. 

14 (c) TOPICS.—The report under subsection (a) shall 

15 include an assessment of the following impacts of the clo16 sure of Backpage.com and other seized websites, the pre17 emptive closure of other websites associated with commer18 cial and non-commercial sex, the changes to civil liability 

19 for websites, and moderation or other operational changes 

20 in relation to the changes in liability pursuant to the Allow 

21 States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act 

22 of 2017 (Public Law 115–164) (or any amendments made 

23 by such Act): 

24 (1) Impact on access to online communication 

25 technologies, including social media services. 


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1 (2) Impact on investigations into trafficking in 

2 persons. 

3 (3) Impact on prosecution of individuals under 

4 section 1591(a) of title 18, United States Code. 

5 (4) Impact on the ability of law enforcement 

6 agencies to find and prosecute individuals who vio7 late section 1591(a) of title 18, United States Code. 

8 (5) Impact of changes made by the Allow 

9 States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking 

10 Act of 2017 (Public Law) (commonly known as 

11 ‘‘SESTA/FOSTA’’) to section 230 of the Commu12 nications Decency Act on State law enforcement 

13 agencies and victims of human trafficking seeking 

14 civil redress against websites engaged in trafficking 

15 of children in violation of section 1591(a) of title 18, 

16 United States Code. 

17 (6) Impact on other policies of the Department 

18 of Justice with respect to the prosecution of websites 

19 under section 1591 or 2421A of title 18, United 

20 States Code. 

21 (7) Disparities in the impacts described in 

22 paragraphs (1) through (6) on key populations typi23 cally underserved by service providers, specifically 

24 LGBTQIA+ individuals, people living in rural areas, 

25 racial and ethnic minorities, Tribal communities, 


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1 people experiencing exploitation and trafficking, and 

2 undocumented and documented foreign nationals. 

3 (8) Any other impacts on people engaged in 

4 transactional sex, as determined appropriate by the 

5 Attorney General. 

6 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

7 of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall sub8 mit to Congress the report required under subsection (a) 

9 and make such report available to the public. 

Æ 


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