Fact Sheet: Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Acts (TVPPRA)

Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Acts (H.R.5150, H.R. 6552, S. 3946, S. 3949)

Congress has introduced four Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (“TVPRA”) bills which most notably reauthorize the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) authorizations which expired in September 2021. The TVPA provides critical tools needed to combat human trafficking in the U.S. and abroad by authorizing approximately $1 billion for FY 2022 through 2026 to continue currently enacted appropriation and authorization levels for successful anti-trafficking programs. The four TVPRA bills currently before Congress are H.R. 6552, H.R. 5150, S. 3946, S. 3949. The bills reauthorize and enhance programs, strengthen laws, and add accountability that reflects the critical need for prevention, protection, and prosecution to combat human trafficking domestically and abroad.

Shared Hope International supports these bills because they are trauma-informed, survivor-centered, and proactive. The policies included in this legislation are bipartisan with broad support from at least 17 different national and state-based organizations. The passage of this legislation would have a direct impact on victims and survivors, whose needs would be addressed through the allocation of necessary funding and the implementation of training and educational programs. Overall, this bill ensures the continuation of existing programs, while also increasing transparency and awareness for human trafficking in the U.S. and abroad, and preventing harm to future victims.

Key Provisions

• Sara’s Law: Shared Hope is specifically advocating for the incorporation of “Sara’s Law,” named after child sex trafficking survivor Sara Kruzan, which would enable judges to take into consideration abuse or trauma a child sex trafficking victim has endured to ensure that they do not receive lengthy prison sentences, to be included in TVPRA.
• Child welfare grants: Shared Hope supports HHS grants to eligible states to develop, improve, or expand programs that assist child welfare programs with identifying and responding to human trafficking, including children trafficked by a third-party (i.e., not familial) trafficker.
• Promoting consistent trafficking definitions: Shared Hope supports efforts to promote nationally consistent definitions of child sex trafficking by urging the removal of third-party control requirements from state trafficking laws that narrow the definition in conflict with the federal definition of child sex trafficking.

In addition to reauthorizing critically needed funds that support survivor-centered responses and accountability for exploiters, the following are some highlights of other important provisions in the TVPRA bills:

• The Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act (H.R. 5150)
  • Awarding ‘Human Trafficking Education Grants’, with priority given to local education agencies serving in high intensity trafficking areas and partnering with non-profit organizations specializing in human trafficking prevention education. Additional criteria for selecting includes the ability for engage local partners, provide “culturally responsive, age-appropriate, and trauma informed” training, and create scalable, repeatable programs using “proven and tested best practices.”
  • Encouraging the adoption of prevention education training requirements in elementary and secondary schools, amongst healthcare professionals and social service providers, and within federal government agencies.
  • Incorporates Sara’s Law.
  • Encouraging all states and territories to “eliminate the requirement for third-party control to properly qualify a child as a victim of sex trafficking, to aid in the identification and prevention of child sex trafficking, protect children, and appropriately prosecute perpetrators to the fullest extent of the law” and provides and updated definition of a child sex trafficking victim.
  • Criminalizes an official involved in an investigation of sex trafficking who engages in any sexual act or in sexual contact with any witness or potential witness to such sex trafficking, or victim or person reasonably likely to be the victim of such sex trafficking over the course of the investigation.
  • Amends the language in the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act and the Social Security Act to include labor trafficking victims in addition to sex trafficking victims and promote the needs of child victims.
• The Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act (H.R. 6552)
  • Includes several key provisions from HR 5150, focusing particularly on prevention and addressing the needs of survivors, including the Human Trafficking Survivors Employment and Education Program to prevent the re-exploitation of eligible individuals who have been victims of trafficking, by assisting such individuals to integrate or reintegrate into society through social services support for the attainment of life-skills, employment, and education necessary to achieve self-sufficiency.
  • Notably, H.R. 6552 does not codify Sara’s Law or criminalize officials who engage in sexual conduct with victims or witnesses to sex trafficking.
• The Abolish Human Trafficking Reauthorization Act (S. 3946)
  • Authorizes the Sec. of HHS to make grants to eligible states to develop, improve, or expand programs that assist with child welfare programs that assist with identifying and responding to human trafficking to states that have eliminated third-party control requirements. Also requires the state to develop and implement a specialized protocol for responding when victims are exploited by a third-party (i.e., not familial) trafficker.
  • Incorporates Sara’s Law.
  • Also includes provisions related to Human Trafficking Education Grants as in H.R. 5150 and H.R. 6552.
• The Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2022 (S. 3949)
  • Makes grants to State child welfare and juvenile justice agencies and child- and youth-serving agencies to collaborate in the collection of data relating to dual status youth and to develop practices, policies, and protocols to confront the challenges presented and experienced by dual status youth.
  • Criminalizes an official involved in an investigation of sex trafficking who engages in any sexual act or in sexual contact with any witness or potential witness to such sex trafficking, or victim or person reasonably likely to be the victim of such sex trafficking over the course of the investigation.
  • Codifies a Survivor’s Bill of Rights.

Learn More and Take Action:

• Use this campaign to ask your members of Congress to pass the TVPRA bills.
• Visit sharedhope.org/what-we-do/bring-justice/ to access Shared Hope’s research and advocacy resources.
• For technical assistance, contact Christine Raino at christine@sharedhope.org.

Additional Sources:

• Marking the anniversary of Frederick Douglass’ self-emancipation from slavery, Smith, Bass joined by descendent of Frederick Douglass to introduce anti-trafficking reauthorization bill named after the renowned abolitionist, (Sept. 3, 2021) chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=409642.
• Cornyn, Klobuchar Introduce Reauthorization of Landmark Anti-Human Trafficking Law, (March 30, 2022) cornyn.senate.gov/node/6640
• Grassley, Feinstein Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support Victims of Human Trafficking (March 29, 2022) feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=6EE4F785-D8AF-4B57-9A77-5668A2FEB070
• International and Domestic Law, U.S. Dept. of State, state.gov/international-and-domestic-law/
• Congress Introduces Legislation Named After Abolitionist Frederick Douglass to Combat Modern Day Human Trafficking, (Sept. 7, 2021) essence.com/news/legislation-named-after-frederick-douglass/