I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6328 
To establish a congressional Commission on the Abolition of Modern-Day 
Slavery. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 15, 2006 
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. LEWIS of Georgia) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on International 
Relations, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary and Ways 
and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the juris-
diction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To establish a congressional Commission on the Abolition 
of Modern-Day Slavery. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Congressional Commis-
sion on the Abolition of Modern-Day Slavery Act’’. 
SEC. 2. MODERN-DAY SLAVERY. 
In this Act, the term ‘‘modern-day slavery’’ means 
the status or condition of a person over whom any power 
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attaching to the right of ownership or control is exercised 
by means of exploitation through involuntary servitude, 
forced labor, child labor, debt bondage or bonded labor, 
serfdom, peonage, trafficking in persons for forced labor 
or for sexual exploitation (including child sex tourism and 
child pornography), forced marriage, or other similar 
means. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) Modern-day slavery takes many forms, in-
cluding chattel slavery or slavery by descent, and the 
exploitation occurs in a myriad of situations, includ-
ing in the agricultural, commercial sex, construction, 
manufacturing, and service industries, as well as in 
domestic servitude. 
(2) The perpetrators of modern-day slavery vio-
late the dignity of men, women, and children, using 
violence that at times results in death, sexual abuse, 
rape, torture, dangerous and degrading working con-
ditions, poor nutrition, drug and alcohol addiction, 
and psychological trauma. 
(3) According to the Universal Declaration of 
Human Rights ‘‘No one shall be held in slavery or 
servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be pro-
hibited in all their forms.’’. 
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(4) The United States and the international 
community have acknowledged that modern-day 
slavery must be abolished in accordance with the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; 
the Slavery, Servitude, Forced Labour and Similar 
Institutions and Practices Convention of 1926; the 
Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slav-
ery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices 
Similar to Slavery; the Optional Protocol to the Con-
vention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of 
Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography; 
the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the 
Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children 
in Armed Conflicts; the Convention concerning the 
Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimi-
nation of the Worst Forms of Child Labour; the 
Abolition of Forced Labour Convention; and the 
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Traf-
ficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, 
Supplementing the United Nations Convention 
Against Transnational Organized Crime. 
(5) The Declaration of Independence recognizes 
the inherent dignity and worth of all people and 
states that all people are created equal and are en-
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dowed by their Creator with certain unalienable 
rights. 
(6) The 13th amendment to the Constitution of 
the United States recognizes that ‘‘Neither slavery 
nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment 
for crime whereof the party shall have been duly 
convicted, shall exist within the United States, or 
any place subject to their jurisdiction.’’. 
(7) The United States has given particular pri-
ority to combating trafficking in persons, a form of 
modern-day slavery, through the enactment of the 
Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (division 
A of Public Law 106–386) and the Trafficking Vic-
tims Protection Reauthorization Acts of 2003 and 
2005 (Public Laws 108–193 and 109–164). 
(8) The importation into the United States of 
goods mined, produced, or manufactured by forced 
or indentured labor, including forced or indentured 
child labor, is prohibited under the Tariff Act of 
1930. 
SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a con-
gressional Commission on the Abolition of Modern-Day 
Slavery (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 
(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 
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(1) COMPOSITION.—The Commission shall be 
composed of 12 members, of whom— 
(A) 3 shall be appointed by the Speaker of 
the House of Representatives; 
(B) 3 shall be appointed by the majority 
leader of the Senate; 
(C) 3 shall be appointed by the minority 
leader of the House of Representatives; and 
(D) 3 shall be appointed by the minority 
leader of the Senate. 
(2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Members of the Com-
mission shall be individuals with demonstrated ex-
pertise or experience in combating modern-day slav-
ery. 
(3) DATE.—The appointments of the members 
of the Commission shall be made not later than 30 
days after the date of enactment of this Act. 
(c) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.—Mem-
bers shall be appointed for the life of the Commission. Any 
vacancy in the Commission shall not affect its powers, but 
shall be filled in the same manner as the original appoint-
ment. 
(d) CO-CHAIRPERSONS.—The Speaker of the House 
of Representatives shall designate 1 of the members ap-
pointed under subsection (b)(1)(A) as a co-chairperson of 
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the Commission. The majority leader of the Senate shall 
designate 1 of the members appointed under subsection 
(b)(1)(B) as a co-chairperson of the Commission. 
(e) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 60 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall 
hold its first meeting. 
(f) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the 
call of either Co-chairperson. 
(g) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the 
Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser num-
ber of members may meet or hold hearings. 
SEC. 5. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION. 
(a) STUDY.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall— 
(A) conduct a thorough study of modern- 
day slavery in all its forms, including the fac-
tors contributing to modern-day slavery, such 
as certain social structures, the failure by au-
thorities to enforce laws prohibiting slavery and 
prosecuting the perpetrators of slavery, corrup-
tion among officials, and the vulnerability of 
certain populations, such as those in areas of 
conflict and post conflict, transitioning states, 
or states undergoing sudden political upheaval, 
economic collapse, civil unrest, internal armed 
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conflict, chronic unemployment, widespread 
poverty, or manmade or natural disasters; 
(B) review programs of relevant govern-
mental agencies with respect to modern-day- 
slavery, including the Office of the United 
States Trade Representative, the Department 
of Commerce, the Department of Defense, the 
Department of Health and Human Services, the 
Department of Homeland Security, the Depart-
ment of Labor, the Department of the Treas-
ury, the United States Agency for International 
Development, the Department of State, the 
President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor 
and Combat Trafficking in Persons, and the 
Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center; 
(C) examine efforts undertaken by foreign 
countries and multilateral organizations to pre-
vent or combat modern-day slavery in all its 
forms, prosecute the perpetrators or protect its 
victims, and identify those countries with the 
most significant number of victims of modern- 
day slavery; and 
(D) convene additional experts from rel-
evant nongovernmental organizations as part of 
the Commission’s review. 
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(2) GOALS.—Based on its findings under para-
graph (1), the Commission shall— 
(A) advise the Congress on how the United 
States could lend support to the efforts to 
eradicate modern-day slavery in all its forms; 
(B) provide a comprehensive evaluation of 
best practices to prevent modern-day slavery in 
all its forms; 
(C) provide a comprehensive evaluation of 
the best practices to rescue and rehabilitate vic-
tims of modern-day slavery in all its forms; 
(D) provide a comprehensive evaluation of 
the best practices to ensure the prosecution of 
acts of modern-day slavery and increase ac-
countability within countries that tolerate mod-
ern-day slavery; 
(E) provide a comprehensive evaluation of 
the effectiveness of United States laws prohib-
iting the importation of goods manufactured or 
produced in whole or in part through forced 
labor or child labor, as well as policies and rela-
tions with regard to countries that tolerate 
modern-day slavery; 
(F) provide a comprehensive evaluation of 
comparative models and strategies to prevent 
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modern-day slavery, rescue and rehabilitate vic-
tims of modern-day slavery, prosecute offend-
ers, and increase education about modern-day 
slavery in all its forms; 
(G) examine the economic impact on com-
munities and countries that demonstrate meas-
ured success in fighting modern-day slavery in 
all its forms; and 
(H) increase throughout the United States 
and among high-risk populations education and 
awareness about modern-day slavery in all its 
forms. 
(b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Commission shall de-
velop recommendations for legislative and administrative 
actions necessary for the most effective ways to combat 
and eliminate modern-day slavery in all its forms, develop 
international cooperation to combat modern-day slavery 
and determine the nature of what constitutes appropriate 
relations with countries that tolerate modern-day slavery 
in any form. 
(c) REPORT.—Not later than 11 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall sub-
mit to the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House of 
Representatives and the Majority Leader and Minority 
Leader of the Senate, a report containing the results of 
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the study and other activities conducted under subsection 
(a) and the recommendations developed under subsection 
(b). 
SEC. 6. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION. 
(a) HEARINGS.—The Commission may hold such 
hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such 
testimony, and receive such evidence as the Commission 
considers necessary to carry out this Act. 
(b) INFORMATION FROM GOVERNMENTAL AGEN-
CIES.—The Commission may secure directly from any de-
partment or agency such information as the Commission 
considers necessary to carry out this Act. Upon request 
of either co-chairperson of the Commission, the head of 
such department or agency shall furnish such information 
to the Commission. 
SEC. 7. COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS. 
(a) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—Each member of 
the Commission who is not an officer or employee of the 
Federal Government shall be compensated at a rate equal 
to the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay pre-
scribed for level IV of the Executive Schedule under sec-
tion 5313 of title 5, United States Code, for each day (in-
cluding travel time) during which such member is engaged 
in the performance of the duties of the Commission. All 
members of the Commission who are officers or employees 
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of the United States shall serve without compensation in 
addition to that received for their services as officers or 
employees of the United States. 
(b) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of the Com-
mission shall be allowed travel expenses, including per 
diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employ-
ees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 
5, United States Code, while away from their homes or 
regular places of business in the performance of services 
for the Commission. 
(c) STAFF.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The co-chairpersons of the 
Commission, acting jointly, may, without regard to 
the civil service laws and regulations, appoint and 
terminate an executive director and such other addi-
tional personnel as may be necessary to enable the 
Commission to perform its duties. The employment 
of an executive director shall be subject to confirma-
tion by the Commission. 
(2) COMPENSATION.—The co-chairpersons of 
the Commission, acting jointly, may fix the com-
pensation of the executive director and other per-
sonnel without regard to chapter 51 and subchapter 
III of chapter 53 of title 5, United Sates Code, re-
lating to classification of positions and General 
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Schedule pay rates, except that the rate of pay for 
the executive director and other personnel may not 
exceed the rate payable for level V of the Executive 
Schedule under section 5316 of such title. 
(d) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.—Federal 
Government employees may be detailed to the Commission 
without reimbursement, and such detail shall be without 
interruption or loss of civil service status or privilege. 
(e) PROCUREMENT OF TEMPORARY AND INTERMIT-
TENT SERVICES.—The co-chairpersons of the Commis-
sion, acting jointly, may procure temporary and intermit-
tent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United 
States Code, at rates for individuals which do not exceed 
the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay pre-
scribed for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 
5316 of such title. 
SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF THE COMMISSION. 
The Commission shall terminate 90 days after the 
date on which the Commission submits its report under 
section 5(c). 
SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro-
priated to the Commission for fiscal year 2007 such sums 
as may be necessary to carry out this Act. 
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(b) AVAILABILITY.—Any sums appropriated under 
the authorization contained in this section shall remain 
available, without fiscal year limitation, until expended. 
Æ 
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