A bill to prohibit individuals charged with or convicted of human trafficking or drug trafficking offenses committed near the border of the United States from receiving Federal benefits.

Bill: 118-s-519
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Blackburn, Marsha [R-TN]
Introduced: 2023-02-16
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Disability assistance

Drug trafficking and controlled substances

Government lending and loan guarantees

Human trafficking

Licensing and registrations

Medicaid

Medicare

Poverty and welfare assistance

Public contracts and procurement

Public housing

Smuggling and trafficking

Social security and elderly assistance

Veterans' pensions and compensation
Latest action: action_date: 2023-02-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Summaries:
action_date: 2023-02-16
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>This bill prohibits an individual who is indicted for, charged with, or convicted of a covered trafficking offense from receiving federal benefits.</p> <p><i>Covered trafficking offense</i> refers to a human trafficking offense or a drug trafficking offense occurring at an international border, or within the territorial waters, of the United States.</p> <p><i>Federal benefit</i> refers to (1) the issuance of any grant, contract, loan, professional license, or commercial license provided by a U.S. agency or by appropriated U.S. funds; and (2) any retirement, welfare, Social Security, health, disability, veterans, public housing, or other similar benefit.</p> <p>The bill requires the federal government to provide retroactive benefits payments for an individual who has the charge dismissed or is found not guilty of the covered trafficking offense.</p>

tv_txt: II 118th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 519 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES February 16, 2023 Mrs. Blackburn (for herself, Mrs. Hyde-Smith , Mrs. Britt , Mr. Braun , and Mr. Rounds ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs A BILL To prohibit individuals charged with or convicted of human trafficking or drug trafficking offenses committed near the border of the United States from receiving Federal benefits.

1. Prohibition on Federal benefits for human traffickers and drug traffickers (a) Definitions In this section— (1) the term covered trafficking offense means a human trafficking offense or a drug trafficking offense for which any portion of the course of conduct constituting the human trafficking offense or drug trafficking offense occurred at an international border of the United States or within the territorial waters of the United States; (2) the term drug trafficking offense means any Federal offense that includes as an element of the offense the distribution of a controlled substance (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act ( 21 U.S.C. 802 )); (3) the term Federal benefit — (A) means the issuance of any grant, contract, loan, professional license, or commercial license provided by an agency of the United States or by appropriated funds of the United States; and (B) includes any retirement, welfare, Social Security, health, disability, veterans, public housing, or other similar benefit; and (4) the term human trafficking offense means an offense under— (A) section 1581, 1583, 1584, 1589, 1590, 1591, 2251A, 2421, 2422, or 2423 of title 18, United States Code; or (B) section 274(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1324(a) ). (b) Prohibition on benefits An individual who is indicted for, charged in an information with, or convicted of a covered trafficking offense shall be ineligible for any Federal benefit. (c) Termination of prohibition for individuals not convicted If, for each covered trafficking offense with which an individual is charged, the charge is dismissed or the individual is found not guilty of the covered trafficking offense— (1) the ineligibility of the individual for any Federal benefit under subsection (b) shall terminate; and (2) the Federal Government shall pay to the individual any pecuniary Federal benefit that was not paid to the individual because the individual was ineligible for the Federal benefit under subsection (b).