Sex Trafficking

After leading the campaign to put domestic sex trafficking of children on the national agenda, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), worked with Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy to include key provisions of his legislation into the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2011. Nearly 100,000 American girls and young women are trafficked for sex within the United States each year, and the Wyden-authored provision will help put an end to this modern-day sexual slavery.

Full text of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2011 (116.8 KB)

The provision included in the TVPRA creates a pilot program where block grants are given to four areas of the country particularly hard hit by sex trafficking. The grants would be used to create a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary approach to combat sex trafficking of minors. Each block grant would be for $1.5 to $2 million per year for up to four years. The block grants could fund:

  • Housing for child victims of sex trafficking
  • Clothing and other daily needs in order to keep victims from returning to the street
  • Mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment, and case management
  • Victims’ assistance counseling and legal services
  • Education or job training classes for victims
  • Outreach, education, and deterrence/prevention efforts
  • Education and training for law enforcement personnel on how to investigate crimes involving the sex trafficking of minors who are United States citizens or aliens admitted for permanent residence, including how to identify minor victims of sex trafficking

At the request of Senator Wyden, the reauthorization also includes language directing the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking to “make reasonable efforts to distribute information to enable all Federal Government agencies to publicize the National Human Trafficking Resource Center Hotline on their websites, in all headquarters offices, and in all field offices throughout the United States”.

The NHTRC Hotline number is a cooperative agreement managed by the Department of Health and Human Services.  The number is currently posted either mandatorily or voluntarily in 9 states and received more than 32,000 calls from December 2007 to May 31, 2011.  NHTRC staff members have identified more than 4,700 potential victims of human trafficking. 

Senator Wyden’s record to combat sex trafficking:

  • 3/16/2011 - Wyden, Cornyn Introduce Bill to Combat Sex Trafficking of Minors (News Release)
  • 3/16/2011 - Wyden Speaks at Senate Briefing on Sex Trafficking in the U.S., Introduces legislation (Video)
  • 3/16/2011 - Mira Sorvino Gives Empassioned Speech Against Child Sex Trafficking During Senate Briefing (Video)
  • 12/9/2010 - Wyden/Cornyn Sex Trafficking Bill Passes Senate (News Release)
  • 8/5/2010 - Judiciary Committee Approves Wyden-Cornyn Legislation to Combat Sex Trafficking (News Release)
  • 2/24/2010 - Wyden Testimony on Child Sex-Trafficking Bill (Video)
  • 12/22/2009 - Wyden and Cornyn Launch Effort to Help Victims of Sex Trafficking (News Release)
  • 12/14/2009 - Wyden Hosts Briefing on Human Sex Trafficking (Video)
  • 12/11/2009 - Wyden Briefing to Shed Light on Human Sex Trafficking Crisis (News Release)
  • 11/12/2009 - Wyden Legislation Seeks to Disrupt Oregon Sex Trafficking (News Release)

Latest