Today the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Act of 2017 (Smith-Bass Douglass TVPA, H.R. 2200), authored by Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) and lead Democrat Karen Bass (CA-37), today advanced from the House Foreign Affairs Committee and moves closer to House passage..

     The Smith-Bass legislation, named after the great American abolitionist, will build on the successes of the original Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) and ensure that victims get the protections they need—and traffickers receive the justice they deserve.

     “In the fight to end modern day slavery, the new bill honors the extraordinary legacy of one of the greatest Americans who ever lived,” said Smith. “A gifted orator, author, editor, statesman (and Republican), he died in 1895. But his commitment to liberty and justice lives on.  We honor him and continue to pursue his life goals with this bill, which will to prevent human trafficking, help former victims get back on their feet, educate future generations to avoid enslavement, and hold traffickers accountable at home and abroad.”

     Among other key provisions, the Smith-Bass Frederick Douglass anti-trafficking bill: 

· Directs grant money for the education of vulnerable children to avoid traffickers;

· Incentivizes hotels to train their employees to identify potential trafficking victims;

· Requires pilots and flight attendants to have airline industry-specific anti-trafficking training;

· Enhances and funds Department of Labor reporting to Customs and Border Patrol and businesses on foreign products and components likely tainted with human trafficking, helping to keep these products out of the U.S.—and profits out of the hands of traffickers;

· Educates procurement officers in U.S. government agencies to apply all U.S. law and regulations preventing purchases of goods made with trafficking or services from contractors who participate in human trafficking;

· Encourages  more accurate reporting and tier ranking in the U.S. Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report, which is used to guide better policy and accountability at home and abroad;

· Empowers trafficking survivors to educate government on better, more effective anti-trafficking policies. 

· Provides that if a country receives a presidential waiver under the Act, the President must certify to appropriate Congressional Committees that the government is taking “effective and continuing steps” to address the problem of child soldiers; and

· Refine the definitions under the act to clarify that government-supported police or other security forces that recruit or use child soldiers are to be covered by the Child Soldiers Prevention Act.

     “We welcome several of the top anti-human trafficking organizations who have endorsed the legislation, including the Frederick Douglass Family Foundation, whose work educating children about the threat of trafficking has inspired this legislation, ATEST (which is a consortium of 13 powerhouse, anti-trafficking NGOs), the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops, Rights for Girls and Ambassador Swanee Hunt,” said Smith.

     After the 2000 TVPA, Smith wrote two subsequent anti-trafficking laws (PL 108-193 and PL 109-164) increasing resources for crime prevention and expanding treatment assistance for victims. The original co-Sponsors for the new bill include Rep. Ed Royce (CA-39), Rep. Shelia Jackson-Lee (TX-18), Rep. Susan Brooks (IN-05), Rep. Lois Frankel (FL-21), Rep. Ann Wagner (MO-02), Rep. Tony Cárdenas (CA-29) and Rep. Ted Poe (TX-02).

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