Leveraging Information on Foreign Traffickers Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5664) to amend the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to ensure adequate time for the preparation of the annual Trafficking in Persons Report, require the timely provision of information to the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Bureau of Diplomatic Security of the Department of State regarding the number and location of visa denials based, in whole or in part, on grounds related to human trafficking, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 5664
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Leveraging Information on Foreign Traffickers Act'' or the ``LIFT Act''. SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the annual Trafficking In Persons Report prepared by the Department of State pursuant to the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (the ``TIP Report'') remains one of the most comprehensive, timely, and important sources of information on human trafficking in the world, and currently includes 187 individual country narratives;
(2) in January 2019, the statute mandating the TIP Report was amended to require that each report must cover efforts and activities occurring within the period from April 1 of the prior year through March 31 of the current year, which necessarily requires the collection and transmission of information after March 31;
(3) ensuring that the Department of State has adequate time to receive, analyze, and incorporate trafficking-related information into its annual Trafficking In Persons Report is important to the quality and comprehensiveness of that report;
(4) information regarding prevalence and patterns of human trafficking is important for understanding the scourge of modern slavery and making effective decisions about where and how to combat it; and
(5) United States officials responsible for monitoring and combating trafficking in persons around the world should receive available information regarding where and how often United States diplomatic and consular officials encounter persons who are responsible for, or who knowingly benefit from, severe forms of trafficking in persons. SEC. 3. ANNUAL DEADLINE FOR TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT.
Section 110(b)(1) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107(b)(1)) is amended by striking ``June 1'' and inserting ``June 30''. SEC. 4. UNITED STATES ADVISORY COUNCIL ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING.
(a) Extension.--Section 115(h) of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 (Public Law 114-22; 129 Stat. 243) is amended by striking ``September 30, 2021'' and inserting ``September 30, 2025''.
(b) Compensation.--Section 115(f) of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 (Public Law 114-22; 129 Stat. 243) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' after the semicolon at the end;
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at end and inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(3) may each receive compensation for each day such member is engaged in the actual performance of the duties of the Council.''.
(c) Compensation Report.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall provide to the relevant congressional committees a plan to implement compensation for members of the United States Advisory Council on Human Trafficking pursuant to paragraph (3) of section 115(f) of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 (Public Law 114-22; 129 Stat. 243), as added by subsection (b). SEC. 5. TIMELY PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO THE OFFICE TO MONITOR AND COMBAT TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.
(a) In General.--Section 106 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7104) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(l) Information Regarding Human Trafficking-Related Visa Denials.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of State shall ensure that the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Bureau of Diplomatic Security of the Department of State receive timely and regular information regarding United States visa denials based, in whole or in part, on grounds related to human trafficking.
``(2) Decisions regarding allocation.--The Secretary of State shall ensure that decisions regarding the allocation of resources of the Department of State related to combating human trafficking and to law enforcement presence at United States diplomatic and consular posts appropriately take into account--
``(A) the information described in paragraph (1); and
``(B) the information included in the most recent report submitted in accordance with section 110(b).''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
``(18) Grounds related to human trafficking.--The term `grounds related to human trafficking' means grounds related to the criteria for inadmissibility to the United States described in subsection (a)(2)(H) of section 212 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182).''. SEC. 6. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.
(a) Initial Report.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall provide to the relevant congressional committees a report that--
(1) describes the actions that have been taken and that are planned to implement subsection (l) of section 106 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7104), as added by section 5 of this Act; and
(2) identifies by country and by United States diplomatic and consular post the number of visa applications denied during the previous calendar year with respect to which the basis for such denial, included grounds related to human trafficking (as such term is defined in section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102) (as amended by section 5(b))).
(b) Annual Report.--Beginning with the first annual anti- trafficking report required under subsection (b)(1) of section 110 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107; enacted as division A of the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000) that is submitted after the date of the enactment of this Act and concurrent with each such subsequent submission for the following seven years, the Secretary of State shall submit to the relevant congressional committees a report that contains information relating to the number and the locations of United States visa denials based, in whole or in part, on grounds related to human trafficking (as such term is defined in section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102) (as amended by section 5(b))) during the period covered by each such annual anti-trafficking report. SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Locations of united states visa denials.--The term ``location of United States visa denials'' means--
(A) the United States diplomatic or consular post at which a denied United States visa application was adjudicated; and
(B) the city or locality of residence of the applicant whose visa application was so denied.
(2) Relevant congressional committees.--The term ``relevant congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate.
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Mr. CASTRO of Texas. 5664.
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Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, human trafficking, better termed modern-day slavery, has grown into a sprawling and complex billion-dollar criminal enterprise. An estimated 25 million people are currently victims of trafficking, having been forced into abusive situations involving forced labor, sex exploitation, and involuntary domestic servitude.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee has a long history of confronting modern-day slavery, and the LIFT Act continues that legacy for this committee.
Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend and the ranking member of the committee, Mr. McCaul, for authoring this bill, and Mr. Smith for his leadership on this issue for over two decades.
In 2000, President Clinton signed into law the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Prevention Act, now hailed as the most comprehensive legislation on human trafficking to date. That landmark piece of legislation came out of the Foreign Affairs Committee and was authored by our colleague, Chris Smith.
That legislation gave the State Department the responsibility of drafting the annual Trafficking Report, which has been a critical resource in pushing countries to take action to combat human trafficking.
The bill before us ensures that the State Department has adequate time to prepare the annual Trafficking Report. It streamlines data sharing among bureaus on visa denials for human traffickers and engages trafficking survivors in our policymaking process.
We must continue to fight modern-day slavery and work to enact legislation that brings us to a brighter future free of this horrific injustice. Today's measure is a step in that direction, and I hope all of my colleagues, Republican and Democrat, will join me in supporting it.
House of Representatives, Committee on Judiciary, Washington, DC, July 30, 2020. Hon. Eliot L. Engel, Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Engel: This is to advise you that the Committee on the Judiciary has now had an opportunity to review the provisions in H.R. 5664, the LIFT Act, that fall within our Rule X jurisdiction. I appreciate your consulting with us on those provisions. The Judiciary Committee has no objection to your including them in the bill for consideration on the House floor, and to expedite that consideration is willing to waive sequential referral, with the understanding that we do not thereby waive any future jurisdictional claim over those provisions or their subject matters.
In the event a House-Senate conference on this or similar legislation is convened, the Judiciary Committee reserves the right to request an appropriate number of conferees to address any concerns with these or similar provisions that may arise in conference.
Please place this letter into the Congressional Record during consideration of the measure on the House floor. Thank you for the cooperative spirit in which you have worked regarding this matter and others between our committees. Sincerely, Jerrold Nadler, Chairman. ____ House of Representatives, Committee on Foreign Affairs, Washington, DC, July 31, 2020. Hon. Jerrold Nadler, Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Nadler: I am writing to you concerning H.R. 5664, the LIFT Act. I appreciate your willingness to work cooperatively on this legislation.
I acknowledge that provisions of the bill fall within the jurisdiction of the House Committee on the Judiciary under House Rule X, and that your Committee will forgo action on H.R. 5664 to expedite floor consideration. I further acknowledge that the inaction of your Committee with respect to the bill does not waive any future jurisdictional claim over the matters contained in the bill that fall within your jurisdiction. I will also support the appointment of Committee on the Judiciary conferees during any House-Senate conference convened on this legislation.
Lastly, I will ensure that our exchange of letters is included in the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the bill. Thank you again for your cooperation regarding the legislation. I look forward to continuing to work with you as the measure moves through the legislative process. Sincerely, Eliot L. Engel, Chairman.
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Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for the purpose of closing.
Combating human trafficking is a global challenge, and we are proud of the State Department's critical role in that effort. This legislation will ensure that the Department has the tools and resources necessary to counter these heinous human rights abuses.
I would like to thank the ranking member, Mr. McCaul, for his work on this important issue. This is a strong bill that I am pleased to support, and I urge my colleagues, Democrat and Republican, to do the same.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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