Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act
Floor Speech
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Ms. MOORE. I thank the gentleman from Virginia.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3610, the Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act.
Before I say anything, I want to thank Congressman Erik Paulsen of Minnesota, who has been a tremendous, superb partner throughout the process of putting this legislation together. I also want to thank the authors of all of the other four bills that are going to be considered today.
This bill really incentivizes States to put safe harbor laws into place, and that is the crux of this bill, but I can tell you that solving the problem of the sexual exploitation of children is going to require a lasting commitment and a bipartisan effort.
It is going to be very, very, very difficult, colleagues, because, as the FBI has told us, this is not just something that happens in Nigeria, but it is something that happens right here in the United States.
It is a $9.5 billion annual business activity. There are 100,000 kids a year who are currently trafficked, and another 200,000 are at risk. A pimp can earn as much as $250,000 a year in this booming business, so it is going to take all of us to stop this.
The victims are mostly girls, and on average, they are trafficked at age 13. I am embarrassed and I regret to report that my own hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has become known as the sex trafficking hub for both children and adults.
As a matter of fact, the FBI reports that Milwaukee is the second highest in the Nation for recovered youth; yet trafficking is now common in communities all across the country, not just in urban, but in suburban, in rural, and from coast to coast.
Predators victimize vulnerable young people, such as those whom my colleague from California, Congresswoman Bass, will talk about in the foster care system. They prey upon those who are in poverty, but they seek out higher income kids, too, going after those who may have some problems at home.
They are predators against those who are LGBTQ. The victimization happens on our streets as well as online. The traffickers are everywhere, as are the consequences--social displacement, health issues, physical pain and disfigurement, infertility, PTSD, suicidal thoughts and attempts.
Thirteen-year-old children need support and not incarceration. The Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act would alter our laws and our thinking about this, which is that minors are to be treated like victims, rather than as perpetrators of crime. They need direction and support for entering programs like the Job Corps, rather than to be prosecuted.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I yield the gen tle lady an additional 1 minute.
Ms. MOORE. Madam Speaker, this legislation also officially establishes a national human trafficking hotline to help connect victims with the services that they need and to allow others to pass along crime tips to law enforcement.
I am so proud that this legislation has been amended to add trafficking victims to those eligible to receive Job Corps services, giving them access to job skills training that can lead them toward a better life, the Job Corps--a port in a very tumultuous storm. I am so pleased to cosponsor this legislation, and I would ask that all of my colleagues support its passage.
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