Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Today, on National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) cosponsored the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act, H.R. 5856. The bipartisan legislation, led by Reps. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) and Susan Wild (D-Pa.), would provide approximately $1 billion over five years to strengthen and expand programs to combat human trafficking by reauthorizing the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month. 

“We have a moral obligation to do all we can to combat and prevent human trafficking in the U.S. and across the globe,” said Rep. Blunt Rochester. “On National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, I’m proud to join members from across the aisle in cosponsoring the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act – important, bipartisan legislation to ensure that we can continue to strengthen our efforts to combat and prevent human trafficking, support survivors, and increase awareness.” 

Background

Human trafficking impacts millions of people in the United States and across the globe every year. According to the U.S. Department of State, there is an estimated 27.6 million victims worldwide at any given time. Combatting human trafficking and the exploitation of women, children, and other victims demands a whole-of-government approach. The Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act would:

• Reauthorize the Department of State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons; and the Trafficking in Persons annual world-wide review and gold standard for accessing countries’ anti-trafficking efforts;
• Reauthorize funding for the International Megan’s Law and Angel Watch programs;
• Encourage the usage of prevention efforts to include accessible, age-appropriate, and trauma-informed approaches for USAID beneficiaries and the further incorporation of counter-trafficking efforts across the development portfolio; and
• Streamline statutory language for Tier 2 Watch List.

Full text of the bill can be found here. 

To report human trafficking in the United States, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free hotline, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-888-373-7888 to speak with a trained Anti-Trafficking Hotline Advocate. 

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