Revising Existing Procedures on Reporting Via Technology Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 474, the REPORT Act. I am pleased to cosponsor the House version of this legislation with my colleague and friend from Florida. I thank Representative Lee for her leadership on this bill. The REPORT Act would strengthen the ongoing collaboration between law enforcement and technology providers to combat sexual exploitation of children.

The exploitation of children through the proliferation of child sex abuse material, frequently referred to as CSAM, can be stopped only with cooperation across many different sectors of American society, from law enforcement to victims' groups to local leaders and technology providers.

The REPORT Act would enable this cooperation and encourage much greater reporting to the CyberTipline, operated by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, or NCMEC.

This legislation would also modify how photos and videos of child sex abuse are stored by providers, would change reporting requirements for platforms, and would give law enforcement more time to investigate these cases. By making updates to the law, the REPORT Act will help law enforcement evolve with the threat, as consumption of child sexual abuse content permeates new technology spaces.

Advancements in technology, from generative AI to social networking platforms, clearly benefit society. Technology has brought us cutting- edge medical and therapeutic breakthroughs, the ability to keep in touch with loved ones far away, and opportunities for budding entrepreneurs and artists who leverage technology to reach their audiences without costly barriers to entry.

However, there is also a dark side. Law enforcement experts and victims' advocates agree: Advancements in technology have led to an explosion of images depicting child sexual abuse available and distributed online.

Demand for new and more egregious photos and videos drives the market for this material, resulting in the continued grotesque abuse and exploitation of children.

Through their comprehensive efforts, the Internet Crimes Against Children, or ICAC, task forces, which represent more than 5,400 local, State, and Federal law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies, are making progress in identifying and rescuing victims of child sex abuse material.

However, the growth of the problem continues to outpace the resources available to identify and locate victims, especially since law enforcement, prosecutors, the tech industry, and other organization must continually contend with the emergence of new technologies, like AI, which further complicates their efforts.

Under the process for reporting child sexual abuse material today, electronic service providers, or companies that offer a platform through which users can communicate, are required to report instances of CSAM to the CyberTipline. After a tip is reported, the company works with NCMEC to share relevant information. NCMEC reviews the incoming reports and then refers them out to the appropriate law enforcement agency, typically a regional ICAC task force.

To date, NCMEC reports that the CyberTipline has received more than 92 million reports since it began in 1998, the majority of them from electronic communication service providers.

NCMEC's Child Victim Identification Program has reviewed more than 331 million images and videos. That is more than 25 million images each year. That is grotesque. While most children reflected in the images remain unknown, more than 19,300 victims have been identified.

I commend the successes of NCMEC and other law enforcement agencies in identifying and rescuing victims, but we cannot be satisfied while so many CSAM victims remain unidentified. That is why the REPORT Act is an important first step to increasing the effectiveness of CSAM reports and better protecting victims from child sexual abuse.

The Senate passed this bill by unanimous consent, with the support of law enforcement groups, the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children, or NCMEC, and technology providers. With passage of the bill today, the next stop will be President Biden's desk.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Lee for her extraordinary leadership to protect all of our children.

In conclusion, the REPORT Act takes an important step toward combating the proliferation of child sexual abuse material online and protecting victims from future abuse. I thank Representative Lee for her leadership in introducing the House version of this bill. I am proud to cosponsor it with her. I thank our Senate partners for sponsoring this legislation. This is about our children.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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