I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1865 
To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to clarify that section 230 
of such Act does not prohibit the enforcement against providers and 
users of interactive computer services of Federal and State criminal 
and civil law relating to sexual exploitation of children or sex trafficking, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 3, 2017 
Mrs. WAGNER (for herself, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Ms. 
CLARKE of New York, Mr. POE of Texas, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY 
of New York, Mr. ROYCE of California, Mrs. ROBY, Mr. KINZINGER, and 
Ms. JENKINS of Kansas) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce, 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 Communications Act of 1934 to clarify that 
section 230 of such Act does not prohibit the enforce-
ment against providers and users of interactive computer 
services of Federal and State criminal and civil law relat-
ing to sexual exploitation of children or sex trafficking, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Allow States and Vic-
tims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Section 230 of the Communications Act of 
1934 (47 U.S.C. 230; commonly known as the 
‘‘Communications Decency Act of 1996’’) was never 
intended to provide legal protection to websites that 
facilitate traffickers in advertising the sale of unlaw-
ful sex acts with sex trafficking victims. 
(2) Clarification of such section is warranted to 
ensure that such section does not provide such pro-
tection to such websites. 
SEC. 3. ENSURING ABILITY TO ENFORCE FEDERAL AND 
STATE CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAW RELATING 
TO SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN OR 
SEX TRAFFICKING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 230 of the Communica-
tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 
and inserting a semicolon; 
(B) in paragraph (5), by striking the pe-
riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
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(B) in the second sentence of paragraph 
(3), by striking ‘‘No cause of action’’ and in-
serting ‘‘Except as provided in paragraphs 
(1)(B) and (5)(B), no cause of action’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(5) NO EFFECT ON CIVIL LAW RELATING TO 
SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN OR SEX TRAF-
FICKING.—Nothing in this section shall be construed 
to impair the enforcement or limit the application 
of— 
‘‘(A) section 1595 of title 18, United 
States Code; or 
‘‘(B) any other Federal or State law that 
provides causes of action, restitution, or other 
civil remedies to victims of— 
‘‘(i) sexual exploitation of children; 
‘‘(ii) sex trafficking of children; or 
‘‘(iii) sex trafficking by force, threats 
of force, fraud, or coercion.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 
of this Act, and the amendment made by subsection 
(a)(2)(C) (and, to the extent it relates to such amendment, 
the amendment made by subsection (a)(2)(B)) shall apply 
regardless of whether the conduct alleged occurred, or is 
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alleged to have occurred, before, on, or after such date 
of enactment. 
SEC. 4. ENSURING FEDERAL LIABILITY FOR PUBLISHING 
INFORMATION 
DESIGNED 
TO 
FACILITATE 
SEX TRAFFICKING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1591 of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub-
section (f); 
(2) in subsection (f), as redesignated by para-
graph (1), by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(6) ‘‘The terms ‘information content provider’ 
and ‘interactive computer service’ have the meanings 
given those terms in section 230 of the Communica-
tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230). 
‘‘(7) The term ‘participation in a venture’ in-
cludes knowing or reckless conduct by any person or 
entity and by any means that furthers or in anyway 
aids or abets the violation of subsection (a)(1).’’; 
and 
(3) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(e)(1) Whoever, being a provider of an interactive 
computer service, publishes information provided by an in-
formation content provider, with reckless disregard that 
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the information provided by the information content pro-
vider is in furtherance of an offense under subsection (a) 
or an attempt to commit such an offense, shall be fined 
in accordance with this title or imprisoned not more than 
20 years, or both. 
‘‘(2) Nothing in paragraph (1) shall be construed to 
require the Federal Government in a prosecution, or a 
plaintiff in a civil action, to prove any intent on the part 
of the information content provider.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—Such section is fur-
ther amended by striking ‘‘subsection (e)(2)’’ each place 
it appears and inserting ‘‘subsection (f)(2)’’. 
Æ 
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