Combating Human Trafficking in Commercial Vehicles Act

To designate a human trafficking prevention coordinator and to expand the scope of activities authorized under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s outreach and education program to include human trafficking prevention activities, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Combating Human Trafficking in Commercial Vehicles Act 2. Human trafficking prevention coordinator The Secretary of Transportation shall designate an official within the Department of Transportation who shall— (1) coordinate human trafficking prevention efforts across modal administrations in the Department of Transportation and with other departments and agencies of the Federal Government; and (2) in coordinating such efforts, take into account the unique challenges of combating human trafficking within different transportation modes. 3. Expansion of outreach and education program Section 31110(c)(1) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: The program authorized under this subsection may support, in addition to funds otherwise available for such purposes, the recognition, prevention, and reporting of human trafficking, while deferring to existing resources, as practicable. 4. Expansion of commercial driver’s license financial assistance program Section 31313(a)(3) of title 49, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking or (2) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as subparagraph (F); and (3) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following: (E) support, in addition to funds otherwise available for such purposes, the recognition, prevention, and reporting of human trafficking; or . 5. Establishment of the Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking (a) Establishment The Secretary shall establish an advisory committee on human trafficking. (b) Membership (1) Composition The Committee shall be composed of not more than 15 external stakeholder members whose diverse experience and background enable them to provide balanced points of view with regard to carrying out the duties of the Committee. (2) Selection The Secretary shall appoint the external stakeholder members to the Committee, including representatives from— (A) trafficking advocacy organizations; (B) law enforcement; and (C) trucking, bus, rail, aviation, maritime, and port sectors, including industry and labor. (3) Periods of appointment Members shall be appointed for the life of the Committee. (4) Vacancies A vacancy in the Committee shall be filled in the manner in which the original appointment was made and shall not affect the powers or duties of the Committee. (5) Compensation Committee members shall serve without compensation. (c) Authority Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish and appoint all members of the Committee. (d) Duties (1) Recommendations for the Department of Transportation Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Committee shall make recommendations to the Secretary on actions the Department can take to help combat human trafficking, including the development and implementation of— (A) successful strategies for identifying and reporting instances of human trafficking; and (B) recommendations for administrative or legislative changes necessary to use programs, properties, or other resources owned, operated, or funded by the Department to combat human trafficking. (2) Best practices and recommendations (A) In general The Committee shall develop recommended best practices for States and State and local transportation stakeholders to follow in combating human trafficking. (B) Development The best practices shall be based on multidisciplinary research and promising, evidence-based models and programs. (C) Content The best practices shall be user-friendly, incorporate the most up-to-date technology, and include the following: (i) Sample training materials. (ii) Strategies to identify victims. (iii) Sample protocols and recommendations, including— (I) strategies to collect, document, and share data across systems and agencies; (II) strategies to help agencies better understand the types of trafficking involved, the scope of the problem, and the degree of victim interaction with multiple systems; and (III) strategies to identify effective pathways for State agencies to utilize their position in educating critical stakeholder groups and assisting victims. (D) Informing States of best practices The Secretary shall ensure that State Governors and State departments of transportation are notified of the best practices and recommendations. (e) Reports Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— (1) submit a report on the actions of the Committee described in subsection (d) to— (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate (B) the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives (2) make the report under paragraph (1) publicly available both physically and online. (f) Definitions In this section: (1) Committee The term Committee (2) Human trafficking The term human trafficking 22 U.S.C. 7102 (3) Secretary The term Secretary December 18, 2017 Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

Summary: Combating Human Trafficking in Commercial Vehicles Act (Sec. 2) This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to designate an official to: (1) coordinate human trafficking prevention efforts across DOT modal administrations and with other federal agencies, and (2) take into account the unique challenges of combating human trafficking within different transportation modes. (Sec. 3) The bill expands the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's outreach and education program and DOT's commercial driver's license financial assistance program to include activities for the recognition, prevention, and reporting of human trafficking. (Sec. 5) DOT shall establish an advisory committee on human trafficking. The committee shall: (1) make recommendations on actions DOT can take to help combat human trafficking, and (2) develop recommended best practices for states and state and local transportation stakeholders in combating human trafficking.