Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2017
This bill modifies the criteria for evaluating whether countries are meeting the minimum standards for combatting human trafficking.
The President shall ensure that federal agencies limit grants and contracts to entities that do not engage in various activities related to human trafficking. Under the bill, one prohibited activity is charging employees for placement or recruitment fees. Previously, entities could charge such fees as long as they were reasonable.
The bill modifies requirements related to the Department of State's annual report to Congress on its anti-human trafficking efforts, which ranks countries on their compliance with the minimum standards laid out in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. For each country that received a different rank from the previous year, the State Department shall explain the reason for the change, including any concrete actions that country took or failed to take to address human trafficking concerns.
The State Department shall prepare an action plan for each country upgraded to tier 2 on the report's watch list, and how such a country can further improve (tier 2 countries do not meet minimum standards for combatting human trafficking but are making significant efforts to do so).
When the State Department downgrades a country to tier 2, it shall give the country's foreign minister a copy of the report and information including the reasons for the change. The State Department shall also explain the implications of the tier 2 designation and of any further downgrades.
The Department of the Treasury shall instruct its U.S. Executive Directors in each multilateral development bank to initiate discussions to further promote anti-human trafficking policies, including development strategies that reduce the prevalence of trafficking.
[115th Congress Public Law 427]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[[Page 132 STAT. 5503]]
Public Law 115-427
115th Congress
An Act
To amend the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to modify the
criteria for determining whether countries are meeting the minimum
standards for the elimination of human trafficking, and for other
purposes. <<NOTE: Jan. 9, 2019 - [S. 1862]>>
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Trafficking
Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2017. 22 USC 7101 note.>>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Trafficking Victims Protection
Reauthorization Act of 2017''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
Section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22
U.S.C. 7102) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (5) through (15) as
paragraphs (7) through (17), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:
``(5) Concrete actions.--The term `concrete actions' means
actions that demonstrate increased efforts by the government of
a country to meet the minimum standards for the elimination of
trafficking, including any of the following:
``(A) Enforcement actions taken.
``(B) Investigations actively underway.
``(C) Prosecutions conducted.
``(D) Convictions attained.
``(E) Training provided.
``(F) Programs and partnerships actively underway.
``(G) Efforts to prevent severe forms of
trafficking, including programs to reduce the
vulnerability of particularly vulnerable populations,
involving survivors of trafficking in community
engagement and policy making, engagement with foreign
migrants, ending recruitment fees, and other such
measures.
``(H) Victim services offered, including immigration
services and restitution.
``(I) The amount of money the government has
committed to the actions described in subparagraphs (A)
through (H).
``(6) Credible information.--The term `credible information'
includes all of the following:
``(A) Reports by the Department of State.
``(B) Reports of other Federal agencies, including
the Department of Labor's List of Goods Produced by
Child Labor or Forced Labor and List of Products
Produced by Forced Labor or Indentured Child Labor.
[[Page 132 STAT. 5504]]
``(C) Documentation provided by a foreign country,
including--
``(i) copies of relevant laws, regulations,
and policies adopted or modified; and
``(ii) an official record of enforcement
actions taken, judicial proceedings, training
conducted, consultations conducted, programs and
partnerships launched, and services provided.
``(D) Materials developed by civil society
organizations.
``(E) Information from survivors of human
trafficking, vulnerable persons, and whistleblowers.
``(F) All relevant media and academic reports that,
in light of reason and common sense, are worthy of
belief.
``(G) Information developed by multilateral
institutions.
``(H) An assessment of the impact of the actions
described in subparagraphs (A) through (I) of paragraph
(5) on the prevalence of human trafficking in the
country.''.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
(a) Private Sector Support to Strengthen Law Enforcement Agencies
and the Role of Private Businesses in Preventing and Combating Child Sex
Trafficking.--It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the President should work with the private sector to
explore, develop, and use technology that strengthens Federal
law enforcement capabilities to combat traffickers and criminal
networks; and
(2) private businesses, both domestic and international,
should take every reasonable step to prevent and combat child
sex trafficking.
(b) Efforts to End Modern Slavery.--It is the sense of Congress that
any future authorization of appropriations to carry out the grant
program authorized under section 1298 of the Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2017 (22 U.S.C. 7114) should simultaneously extend the
accountability provisions under subsections (c), (d), and (e) of such
section.
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON PLACEMENT OR RECRUITMENT FEES.
Section 106(g) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22
U.S.C. 7104(g)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating clauses (i) through (iv) as paragraphs
(1) through (4), respectively, and moving such paragraphs 4 ems
to the left; and
(2) in paragraph (4), as redesignated--
(A) by redesignating subclauses (I) through (V) as
subparagraphs (A) through (E), respectively, and moving
such subparagraphs 4 ems to the left;
(B) in subparagraph (B), as redesignated, by
redesignating items (aa) and (bb) as clauses (i) and
(ii), respectively, and moving such clauses 4 ems to the
left; and
(C) in subparagraph (D), as redesignated, by
striking ``unreasonable placement or recruitment fees''
and all that follows through the period at the end and
inserting ``placement or recruitment fees.''.
[[Page 132 STAT. 5505]]
SEC. 5. MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR THE ELIMINATION OF TRAFFICKING.
Section 108(b)(7) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000
(22 U.S.C. 7106(b)(7)) is amended by inserting ``or enable'' after
``condone''.
SEC. 6. ACTIONS AGAINST GOVERNMENTS FAILING TO MEET MINIMUM
STANDARDS.
Section 110(b) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22
U.S.C. 7107) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) <<NOTE: Time period.>> by striking ``The report
should'' and inserting ``The report shall, to the extent
concurrent reporting data is available, cover efforts
and activities taking place during the period between
April 1 of the year preceding the report and March 31 of
the year in which the report is made, and should'';
(B) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``based only
on concrete actions taken by the country that are
recorded during the reporting period'' after ``such
standards'';
(C) in subparagraph (B) by inserting ``based only on
concrete actions taken by the country (excluding any
commitments by the country to take additional future
steps during the next year) that are recorded during the
reporting period'' after ``compliance'';
(D) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(E) in subparagraph (G), by striking the period at
the end and inserting ``; and''; and
(F) by adding at the end the following:
``(H) for each country included in a different list
than the country had been placed in the previous annual
report, a detailed explanation of how the concrete
actions (or lack of such actions) undertaken (or not
undertaken) by the country during the previous reporting
period contributed to such change, including a clear
linkage between such actions and the minimum standards
enumerated in section 108.'';
(2) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (A)(iii)--
(i) in subclause (I), by adding ``or'' at the
end;
(ii) in subclause (II), by striking ``; or''
and inserting a period; and
(iii) by striking subclause (III);
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``the last
annual report'' and inserting ``April 1 of the previous
year'';
(C) in subparagraph (D)(ii), by striking ``2 years''
and inserting ``1 year''; and
(D) in subparagraph (E)--
(i) in the subparagraph heading, by striking
``Public'' and inserting ``Congressional''; and
(ii) by striking ``shall provide'' and all
that follows and inserting the following:
``shall--
``(i) provide a detailed description of the
credible information supporting such determination
on a publicly available website maintained by the
Department of State; and
[[Page 132 STAT. 5506]]
``(ii) <<NOTE: Briefing.>> offer to brief the
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives on any written plan submitted by
the country under subparagraph (D)(ii)(I), with an
opportunity to review the written plan.'';
(3) in paragraph (3)--
(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the semicolon
at the end and inserting a period; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(D) the extent to which the government of the
country is devoting sufficient budgetary resources--
``(i) to investigate and prosecute acts of
severe trafficking in persons;
``(ii) to convict and sentence persons
responsible for such acts; and
``(iii) to obtain restitution for victims of
human trafficking;
``(E) the extent to which the government of the
country is devoting sufficient budgetary resources--
``(i) to protect and support victims of
trafficking in persons; and
``(ii) to prevent severe forms of trafficking
in persons; and
``(F) the extent to which the government of the
country has consulted with domestic and international
civil society organizations that resulted in concrete
actions to improve the provision of services to victims
of trafficking in persons.''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(4) Action plans for countries upgraded to tier 2
watchlist.--
``(A) In
general <<NOTE: Deadline. Consultation.>> .--Not later
than 180 days after the release of the annual
Trafficking in Persons Report, the Secretary of State,
acting through the Ambassador-at-Large of the Office to
Monitor and Combat Trafficking and the Assistant
Secretary of the appropriate regional bureau, in
consultation with appropriate officials from the
government of each country described in paragraph
(2)(A)(ii), and with the assistance of the United States
Ambassador or Charge d'Affaires in each country, shall--
``(i) prepare an action plan for each country
upgraded from Tier 3 to Tier 2 Watchlist to
further improve such country's tier ranking under
this subsection; and
``(ii) present the relevant action plan to the
government of each such country.
``(B) Contents.--Each action plan prepared under
this paragraph--
``(i) shall include specific concrete actions
to be taken by the country to substantively
address deficiencies preventing the country from
meeting Tier 2 standards, based on credible
information; and
``(ii) should be focused on short-term and
multi-year goals.
[[Page 132 STAT. 5507]]
``(C) Briefings.--The Ambassador-at-Large of the
Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking and all
appropriate regional Assistant Secretaries shall make
themselves available to brief the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Senate, the Committee on Appropriations
of the Senate, the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the
House of Representatives, and the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives on the
implementation of each action plan prepared under this
paragraph.
``(D) Savings provision.--Nothing in this paragraph
may be construed as modifying--
``(i) minimum standards for the elimination of
trafficking under section 108; or
``(ii) the actions against governments failing
to meet minimum standards under this section or
the criteria for placement on the Special Watch
List under paragraph (2).''.
SEC. 7. COMMUNICATION WITH GOVERNMENTS OF COUNTRIES DESIGNATED AS
TIER 2 WATCH LIST COUNTRIES ON THE TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS REPORT.
(a) <<NOTE: 22 USC 7107 note.>> In General.--Not less than
annually, the Secretary of State shall provide, to the foreign minister
of each country that has been downgraded to a ``Tier 2 Watch List''
country pursuant to the Trafficking in Persons report submitted under
section 110(b) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22
U.S.C. 7107(b))--
(1) a copy of the annual Trafficking in Persons report; and
(2) information pertinent to that country's downgrade,
including--
(A) confirmation of the country's designation to the
Tier 2 Watch List;
(B) the implications associated with such
designation and the consequences for the country of a
downgrade to Tier 3;
(C) the factors that contributed to the downgrade;
and
(D) the steps that the country must take to be
considered for an upgrade in status of designation.
(b) Sense of Congress Regarding Communications.--It is the sense of
Congress that, given the gravity of a Tier 2 Watch List designation, the
Secretary of State should communicate the information described in
subsection (a) to the foreign minister of any country downgraded to the
Tier 2 Watch List.
SEC. 8. <<NOTE: 22 USC 262d note.>> UNITED STATES SUPPORT FOR
INTEGRATION OF ANTI-TRAFFICKING INTERVENTIONS
IN MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT BANKS.
(a) Requirements <<NOTE: Consultation.>> .--The Secretary of the
Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, acting through
the Ambassador at Large for Monitoring and Combating Trafficking in
Persons, shall instruct the United States Executive Director of each
multilateral development bank to initiate discussions with the other
executive directors and management of the respective multilateral
development bank to--
(1) further develop anti-human trafficking provisions in
relevant project development, safeguards, procurement, and
evaluation policies;
[[Page 132 STAT. 5508]]
(2) <<NOTE: Assessments. Plans.>> employing a risk-based
approach, require human trafficking risk assessments and
integration plans as a routine part of developing projects
through existing, forthcoming or new mechanisms and processes;
(3) <<NOTE: Analyses.>> support analyses of the impact of
severe forms of trafficking in persons on key indicators of
economic and social development and of the benefits of reducing
human trafficking on economic and social development;
(4) support the proactive integration of effective anti-
trafficking interventions into projects with the objectives of
enhancing development outcomes and reducing the incidence of
severe forms of trafficking in project areas;
(5) <<NOTE: Assessments.>> increase the capacity of
multilateral development banks and of recipient governments to
conduct human trafficking risk assessments and integrate anti-
trafficking interventions into projects;
(6) <<NOTE: Policies. Regulations. Strategies.>> support
the development of meaningful risk mitigation and reduction
policies, regulations, and strategies within the multilateral
development banks to reduce the incidence and prevalence of
severe forms of trafficking in persons and enhance development
outcomes that may be improved by reducing the incidence and
prevalence of human trafficking; and
(7) <<NOTE: Analysis.>> support the inclusion of human
trafficking risk analysis in the development of relevant country
strategies by each multilateral development bank.
(b) Briefings.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall make relevant
officials available to brief the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate, the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, the Committee on
Financial Services of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives on the implementation of
this section.
Approved January 9, 2019.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--S. 1862:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 164 (2018):
Dec. 17, considered and passed Senate.
Dec. 21, considered and passed House.
DAILY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS (2019):
Jan. 9, Presidential remarks and statement.
<all>
The committee substitute as amended agreed to by Unanimous Consent.
Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Voice Vote.(text: CR S7630-7631)
Passed Senate with an amendment by Voice Vote. (text: CR S7630-7631)
Message on Senate action sent to the House.
Received in the House.
Held at the desk.
Mr. Royce (CA) moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H10548-10550)
DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 1862.
At the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
Considered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H10576)
Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 370 - 0 (Roll no. 491).(text: CR H10548-10549)
Enacted as Public Law 115-427
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On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 370 - 0 (Roll no. 491). (text: CR H10548-10549)
Roll Call #491 (House)Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
Presented to President.
Presented to President.
Signed by President.
Signed by President.
Became Public Law No: 115-427.
Became Public Law No: 115-427.