Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously passed legislation authored by the Committee’s Chairman, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), to combat human trafficking.  The legislation, the Trafficking Prevention in Foreign Affairs Contracting Act (H.R. 400), ensures U.S. tax dollars do not support human trafficking among the thousands of foreign workers the U.S. government employs overseas.

Upon passage of legislation, Chairman Royce said:  “Today’s important legislation ensures that United States overseas contracting does not contribute to the problem of human trafficking.  Specifically, it requires the State Department and USAID to define what prohibited ‘recruitment fees’ are, and to report to Congress on their plans to improve contract monitoring to protect against human trafficking.  With over 20 million human trafficking victims around the world, it is important that we all – including this Committee — work hard to combat this form of modern-day slavery.  Passing today’s legislation is part of that effort.”

Over the past two years as Chairman, Royce convened a number of hearings on human trafficking, including a field hearing in Orange County, California to examine international human trafficking and to assess efforts to combat trafficking at the international, Federal, State and local levels.  These hearings culminated in Committee action on multiple anti-trafficking bills.  Chairman Royce also launched a Human Trafficking Congressional Advisory Committee (HTCAC) to address human trafficking concerns, as well as offer policy recommendations; the HTCAC is comprised of victims’ rights groups, local and federal law enforcement agencies, and community advocates.

The Committee today also passed:

  • H. Res. 53, (introduced by Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL)), which condemns the cowardly attack on innocent men, women and children in the northeastern Nigerian town of Baga.
  • H.R. 757, the North Korea Enforcement Act of 2015 (introduced by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) and Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY), which improves the enforcement of sanctions against the Government of North Korea.

A summary of the Committee action, including adopted amendments, will be available HERE.

###