Human Trafficking and Exploitation Prevention Training Act of 2021

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 2136 To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the implementation of curricula for training students, teachers, parents, and school and youth development personnel to understand, recognize, prevent, and re- spond to signs of human trafficking and exploitation in children and youth, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JUNE 17, 2021 Ms. MURKOWSKI (for herself and Ms. SMITH) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Edu- cation, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the implementation of curricula for training students, teachers, parents, and school and youth development per- sonnel to understand, recognize, prevent, and respond to signs of human trafficking and exploitation in children and youth, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Human Trafficking 4 and Exploitation Prevention Training Act of 2021’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 2136 IS SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 1 Congress finds the following: 2 (1) According to the National Human Traf- 3 ficking Hotline, operated by the National Human 4 Trafficking Resource Center, there is no single pro- 5 file for trafficking survivors—trafficking survivors 6 include adults and minors from rural, suburban, and 7 urban communities across the country. Survivors of 8 human trafficking have diverse socioeconomic back- 9 grounds, varied levels of education, and may be doc- 10 umented or undocumented. According to the 2018 11 Trafficking In Persons Report produced by the De- 12 partment of State, the Department of Justice, the 13 National Human Trafficking Resource Center, and 14 Youth.gov, vulnerable populations and risk factors 15 for human trafficking include— 16 (A) children in the child welfare and juve- 17 nile justice systems; 18 (B) runaway youth; 19 (C) homeless youth; 20 (D) youth forced to leave home by parents 21 or caregivers with no alternate care arranged; 22 (E) unaccompanied children; 23 (F) American Indians and Alaska Natives; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 2136 IS (G) migrant laborers, including undocu- 1 mented workers and individuals with temporary 2 visas; 3 (H) recent migration or relocation; 4 (I) persons with disabilities; 5 (J) LGBTI individuals; 6 (K) people of color; 7 (L) those with limited-English proficiency; 8 (M) low literacy; 9 (N) substance abuse; 10 (O) mental health issues; 11 (P) past trauma or violence; 12 (Q) stigma or discrimination; 13 (R) family conflict, disruption, or dysfunc- 14 tion; 15 (S) community-level risk factors such as 16 peer pressure, social norms, social isolation, 17 gang involvement, and living in an under- 18 resourced school, neighborhood, or community; 19 and 20 (T) society-level risk factors such as lack 21 of awareness of commercial exploitation and 22 human trafficking, sexualization of children, 23 and lack of resources. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 2136 IS (2) According to the National Human Traf- 1 ficking Resource Center, human trafficking survivors 2 have been identified in cities, suburbs, and rural 3 areas in all 50 States, and in Washington, DC. The 4 3 States with the highest incidents of human traf- 5 ficking cases reported via phone calls, emails, and 6 online tips to the National Human Trafficking Hot- 7 line in 2018 were California, Texas, and Florida, re- 8 spectively. 9 (3) According to the National Human Traf- 10 ficking Resource Center, the top recruitment meth- 11 ods used by sex traffickers based on self-reported 12 data from survivors involve an intimate partner or 13 marriage proposition, family members, individuals 14 posing as a benefactor, offers of employment, or in- 15 dividuals perpetrating fraud or offering false prom- 16 ises. 17 (4) According to the National Center on Safe 18 Supportive Learning Environments, traffickers may 19 systematically target vulnerable children by fre- 20 quenting locations where children congregate—malls, 21 schools, bus and train stations, and group homes, 22 among other locations. Traffickers also use peers or 23 classmates who befriend the target and slowly groom 24 the child for the trafficker by bringing the child 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 2136 IS along to parties and other activities. According to 1 Common Sense Media, nearly all children age 8 and 2 under live in a home with some type of mobile device 3 and use it every day. This is especially concerning 4 given that traffickers often recruit through social 5 media platforms and other websites. 6 (5) Those within vulnerable populations are 7 often exploited or groomed for entry into human 8 trafficking at a very young age. According to a 2005 9 clinical report, ‘‘The Evaluation of Sexual Abuse in 10 Children’’, published by the American Academy of 11 Pediatrics, studies have suggested that each year ap- 12 proximately 739,000 children experience some form 13 of sexual abuse, resulting in the sexual victimization 14 of 12 percent to 25 percent of girls and 8 percent 15 to 10 percent of boys before the age of 18. 16 (6) Sex trafficking and exploitation can take 17 many harmful forms, including a lesser-known but 18 just as damaging form of uncoerced exploitation re- 19 ferred to as ‘‘survival sex’’, meaning the exchange of 20 sex for basic needs including clothing, food, shelter, 21 or other basic necessities. Survival sex does not in- 22 volve a third-party trafficker or exploiter, and often 23 affects youth, including those who are homeless, 24 runaways, or housing-insecure, who lack the finan- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 2136 IS cial resources, job readiness, support system, or op- 1 portunity to afford or access these basic necessities. 2 (7) Training students, teachers, and school and 3 youth development personnel to understand, recog- 4 nize, and respond to signs of human trafficking and 5 exploitation in children and youth is invaluable in 6 the effort to identify and prevent human trafficking 7 and exploitation before it occurs. According to the 8 National Human Trafficking Resource Center, the 9 widespread lack of awareness and understanding of 10 human trafficking leads to low levels of survivor 11 identification by the people who most often encoun- 12 ter them. Survivors of human trafficking are often 13 forced to work or provide commercial sex against 14 their will in legal and legitimate business settings or 15 underground markets. It is often the case that those 16 who are being exploited or trafficked are in plain 17 view and may interact with community members, 18 underscoring the urgent need for the expansion of 19 training programs to increase awareness and preven- 20 tion activities in communities across the United 21 States. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 2136 IS SEC. 3. DEMONSTRATION PROJECT TO TRAIN STUDENTS, 1 TEACHERS, AND SCHOOL AND YOUTH DEVEL- 2 OPMENT PERSONNEL TO UNDERSTAND, REC- 3 OGNIZE, PREVENT, AND RESPOND TO SIGNS 4 OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND CHILD EX- 5 PLOITATION. 6 Section 582 of the Public Health Service Act (42 7 U.S.C. 290hh–1) is amended— 8 (1) by resdesignating subsections (j) and (k) as 9 subsections (k) and (l), respectively; 10 (2) by inserting after subsection (i) the fol- 11 lowing: 12 ‘‘(j) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT TO TRAIN STU- 13 DENTS, TEACHERS, PARENTS, AND SCHOOL AND YOUTH 14 DEVELOPMENT PERSONNEL TO UNDERSTAND, RECOG- 15 NIZE, PREVENT, AND RESPOND TO SIGNS OF HUMAN 16 TRAFFICKING AND CHILD EXPLOITATION.— 17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office 18 on Trafficking in Persons of the Administration for 19 Children and Families (in this subsection referred to 20 as the ‘Director’) shall carry out a demonstration 21 project for training students, teachers, school per- 22 sonnel at elementary schools and secondary schools, 23 and other education personnel including community- 24 based partners, and afterschool or summer learning 25 program staff, to understand, recognize, prevent, 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 2136 IS and respond to signs of human trafficking and ex- 1 ploitation in children and youth. 2 ‘‘(2) PROJECT ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out the 3 demonstration project under this subsection, the Di- 4 rector shall— 5 ‘‘(A) approve vendors pursuant to para- 6 graph (3); 7 ‘‘(B) award grants pursuant to paragraph 8 (4); 9 ‘‘(C) develop a reliable methodology for 10 vendors and grantees to collect, and report to 11 the Director, in a manner that prevents disclo- 12 sure of individually identifiable information con- 13 sistent with all applicable privacy laws and reg- 14 ulations, data on the number of human traf- 15 ficking survivors identified and served pursuant 16 to this subsection, the number of students in el- 17 ementary school or secondary school or learning 18 environment identified as being at risk of being 19 trafficked or exploited, and the demographics of 20 such survivors and students at risk; and 21 ‘‘(D) assist entities, in conjunction with 22 the appropriate State, Federal, and Tribal part- 23 ners, that are eligible for grants under para- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 2136 IS graph (4) in developing proper protocols and 1 procedures— 2 ‘‘(i) that may allow such entities to 3 work with law enforcement to report, and 4 facilitate communication with, human traf- 5 ficking survivors and exploited children; 6 and 7 ‘‘(ii) to refer human trafficking sur- 8 vivors and exploited children to appropriate 9 social or survivor service agencies or orga- 10 nizations. 11 ‘‘(3) VENDORS.— 12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the 13 demonstration project under this subsection, 14 the Director shall approve a list of nonprofit or- 15 ganizations as verified vendors— 16 ‘‘(i) to develop or make available cur- 17 ricula for the training described in para- 18 graph (1); and 19 ‘‘(ii) to implement such training in ac- 20 cordance with such curricula. 21 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATIONS.—In approving 22 vendors under this subsection, the Director 23 shall give consideration to whether the non- 24 profit organization— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 2136 IS ‘‘(i) engages stakeholders, including 1 survivors of human trafficking, and Fed- 2 eral, State, local, and Tribal partners, to 3 develop the curricula; and 4 ‘‘(ii) has a demonstrated expertise 5 in— 6 ‘‘(I) developing age-appropriate, 7 culturally competent, and gender-re- 8 sponsive human trafficking and ex- 9 ploitation prevention curricula for stu- 10 dents, teachers, parents, or school 11 personnel in elementary school and 12 secondary school or community-based 13 after school or learning programs; 14 ‘‘(II) training students, teachers, 15 parents, or school and youth develop- 16 ment personnel described in para- 17 graph (1); and 18 ‘‘(III) creating a scalable, repeat- 19 able program that employs appro- 20 priate technology tools and methodolo- 21 gies, including measurement and 22 training curricula. 23 ‘‘(4) GRANTS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 2136 IS ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the 1 demonstration project under this subsection, 2 the Director shall award grants to eligible enti- 3 ties to implement the training described in 4 paragraph (1) in accordance with the curricula 5 developed and made available by verified ven- 6 dors pursuant to paragraph (3). 7 ‘‘(B) DIVERSITY OF GRANTS.—In award- 8 ing grants under this subsection, the Director 9 shall— 10 ‘‘(i) consult with the Director of the 11 Bureau of Justice Assistance and the head 12 of the Office of Partnership and Engage- 13 ment of the Department of Homeland Se- 14 curity to identify the geographic areas in 15 the United States with the highest preva- 16 lence of reported human trafficking in- 17 stances for children, aged 5 through 17; 18 ‘‘(ii) consult with the Secretary of 19 Education, the Attorney General, and as 20 appropriate, with the Secretary of Housing 21 and Urban Development, the Secretary of 22 Labor, and relevant agencies to identify 23 the geographic areas in the United States 24 with the highest prevalence and numbers 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 2136 IS of at risk, vulnerable, or underserved popu- 1 lations, including homeless youth, foster 2 youth, youth involved in the child welfare 3 system, and runaways; and 4 ‘‘(iii) give priority to eligible entities 5 located in, or primarily serving, one or 6 more areas identified pursuant to clause (i) 7 or (ii). 8 ‘‘(C) ALLOCATION OF GRANT FUNDING.— 9 The Director shall ensure that— 10 ‘‘(i) 30 percent of the grant funds 11 under this subsection are awarded to appli- 12 cants to serve elementary school students 13 and teachers; 14 ‘‘(ii) 40 percent of the grant funds 15 under this subsection are awarded to appli- 16 cants to serve middle grades students and 17 teachers; and 18 ‘‘(iii) 30 percent of the grant funds 19 under this subsection are awarded to appli- 20 cants to serve high school students and 21 teachers. 22 ‘‘(D) DEFINITION.—In this paragraph, the 23 term ‘eligible entity’ includes a nonprofit orga- 24 nization, an elementary school, a local edu- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:33 Jul 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2136.IS S2136 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 2136 IS cational agency, a secondary school, a State 1 e [Text truncated for display. 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