Combating Human Trafficking Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-529
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]
Introduced: 2015-02-12
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Child safety and welfare

Congressional oversight

Crime victims

Crimes against children

Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation

Domestic violence and child abuse

Homelessness and emergency shelter

Housing and community development funding

Human trafficking

Law enforcement administration and funding

Sex offenses
Latest action: action_date: 2015-02-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S997-998)

Summaries:
action_date: 2015-02-12
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><b>Combating Human Trafficking Act of 2015</b></p> <p><i>Enhancing Services for Runaway and Homeless Victims of Youth Trafficking Act of 2015</i></p> <p>Amends the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act with respect to grants to states, localities, and private entities to carry out research, evaluation, demonstration, and service projects regarding activities designed to increase knowledge concerning, and to improve services for, runaway youth and homeless youth.</p> <p>Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to give priority to proposed projects relating to staff training in:</p> <ul> <li>the behavioral and emotional effects of severe forms of trafficking in persons and sex trafficking,</li> <li>responding to youth who are showing effects of severe forms of trafficking in persons and sex trafficking, and</li> <li>agency-wide strategies for working with runaway and homeless youth who are victims of trafficking. </li> </ul> <p>Extends the Secretary's authority to make grants to nonprofit private agencies for the purpose of providing street-based services to runaway and homeless, and street youth, who have been subjected to, or are at risk of being subjected to, sexual abuse, prostitution, or sexual exploitation. Extends the scope of such grants also to street-based services to runaway and homeless, and street youth, who have been subjected to, or are at risk of being subjected to, severe forms of trafficking in persons and sex trafficking.</p> <p>Amends the Missing Children's Assistance Act to include among the required uses of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's annual grant to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children operation of a cyber tipline to provide online users and electronic service providers an effective means of reporting Internet-related child sexual exploitation in the area of child sex trafficking, including child prostitution (currently, in the area of child prostitution).</p> <p><i>Human Trafficking Prevention and Recovery Act of 2015</i></p> <p>Requires the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking to review trafficking in persons in the United States.</p> <p>Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress on: (1) the efforts of federal and state law enforcement agencies to combat human trafficking in the United States, and (2) each federal grant program one of whose purposes is to combat human trafficking or assist victims of trafficking.</p> <p>Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to include programs that provide housing to victims of trafficking among grant-receiving state, local, and tribal service programs for victims of trafficking.</p>

tv_txt: II 114th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 529 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES February 12, 2015 Mr. Grassley (for himself and Mr. Kirk ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To improve the services available to runaway and homeless youth who are victims of trafficking, to improve the response to victims of child sex trafficking, to direct the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking to identify strategies to prevent children from becoming victims of trafficking and review trafficking prevention efforts, to protect and assist in the recovery of victims of trafficking, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Combating Human Trafficking Act of 2015 . I Enhancing Services for Runaway and Homeless Victims of Youth Trafficking 101. Short title This title may be cited as the Enhancing Services for Runaway and Homeless Victims of Youth Trafficking Act of 2015 . 102. Amendments to the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act The Runaway and Homeless Youth Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5701 et seq. ) is amended— (1) in section 343(b)(5) ( 42 U.S.C. 5714–23(b)(5) )— (A) in subparagraph (A) by inserting , severe forms of trafficking in persons (as defined in section 103(9) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ( 22 U.S.C. 7102(9) )), and sex trafficking (as defined in section 103(10) of such Act ( 22 U.S.C. 7102(10) )) before the semicolon at the end; (B) in subparagraph (B) by inserting , severe forms of trafficking in persons (as defined in section 103(9) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ( 22 U.S.C. 7102(9) )), or sex trafficking (as defined in section 103(10) of such Act ( 22 U.S.C. 7102(10) )) after assault ; and (C) in subparagraph (C) by inserting , including such youth who are victims of trafficking (as defined in section 103(15) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ( 22 U.S.C. 7102(15) )) before the semicolon at the end; and (2) in section 351(a) ( 42 U.S.C. 5714–41(a) ) by striking or sexual exploitation and inserting sexual exploitation, severe forms of trafficking in persons (as defined in section 103(9) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ( 22 U.S.C. 7102(9) )), or sex trafficking (as defined in section 103(10) of such Act ( 22 U.S.C. 7102(10) )) . II Improving the Response to Victims of Child Sex Trafficking 201. Response to victims of child sex trafficking Section 404(b)(1)(P)(iii) of the Missing Children’s Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5773(b)(1)(P)(iii) ) is amended by striking child prostitution and inserting child sex trafficking, including child prostitution . III Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking 301. Short title This title may be cited as the Human Trafficking Prevention, Intervention, and Recovery Act of 2015 . 302. Victim of trafficking defined In this title, the term victim of trafficking has the meaning given such term in section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ( 22 U.S.C. 7102 ). 303. Interagency task force report on child trafficking primary prevention (a) Review The Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, established under section 105 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ( 22 U.S.C. 7103 ), shall conduct a review that, with regard to trafficking in persons in the United States— (1) in consultation with nongovernmental organizations that the Task Force determines appropriate, surveys and catalogs the activities of the Federal Government and State governments— (A) to deter individuals from committing trafficking offenses; and (B) to prevent children from becoming victims of trafficking; (2) surveys academic literature on— (A) deterring individuals from committing trafficking offenses; (B) preventing children from becoming victims of trafficking; (C) the commercial sexual exploitation of children; and (D) other similar topics that the Task Force determines to be appropriate; (3) identifies best practices and effective strategies— (A) to deter individuals from committing trafficking offenses; and (B) to prevent children from becoming victims of trafficking; and (4) identifies current gaps in research and data that would be helpful in formulating effective strategies— (A) to deter individuals from committing trafficking offenses; and (B) to prevent children from becoming victims of trafficking. (b) Report Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking shall provide to Congress, and make publicly available in electronic format, a report on the review conducted pursuant to subparagraph (a). 304. GAO Report on intervention On the date that is 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit a report to Congress that includes information on— (1) the efforts of Federal and select State law enforcement agencies to combat human trafficking in the United States; and (2) each Federal grant program, a purpose of which is to combat human trafficking or assist victims of trafficking, as specified in an authorizing statute or in a guidance document issued by the agency carrying out the grant program. 305. Provision of housing permitted to protect and assist in the recovery of victims of trafficking Section 107(b)(2)(A) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ( 22 U.S.C. 7105(b)(2)(A) ) is amended by inserting , including programs that provide housing to victims of trafficking before the period at the end.