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Extracted Text (OCR)
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20, Section 224
This section misunderstands the purpose and effect of the model Jaw and should be
deleted. The Department’s model law was never designed to supplant pre-existing state laws
which target pimping, pandering, or prostitution, but rather to supplement those laws. At the
time that the Department’s model law was issued, most states had comprehensive laws
addressing prostitution, pimping, and pandering. However, most states did not have laws
focused on human trafficking. The Department’s law was designed to raise awareness of the
issue of trafficking and to encourage states to closely examine cases to ensure that cases
involving fraud, force, and coercion are not labeled as prostitution offenses. The Department
believes the law has been successful in accomplishing this goal.
21. Section 231
The Department opposes any statutory changes to the annual report, The change in
subsection (1) is unnecessary as this language is currently included in the annual report. The
information requested in the new subsection (I) would be excessively burdensome to gather.
22, Section 232
DO3 opposes this addition as unnecessary. Human trafficking laws that do not require
the proof of force, fraud, or coercion, namely laws that concern minor victims of severe forms of
human trafficking, are already discussed at the annual conferences. To the extent that this
provision would require the Department to discuss human trafficking laws pertaining to adult
victims that do not require the showing of force, fraud, or coercion, such laws would not fall
under the definition of human trafficking and the annual conference would be an inappropriate
venue for the discussion of such laws. However, DOJ trafficking prosecutors utilize a wide
range of statutes in addition to Chapter 77 offenses to address all criminal conduct associated
with human trafficking. This includes the Mann Act, money laundering, visa fraud, immigration
offenses, criminal labor violations, and extortion, in addition to other criminal statutes,
Accordingly, DOJ traming at annual conferences, the National Advocacy Center, the National
Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and field training with the Department of Justice
funded Human Trafficking Task Forces and provided through the Innocence Lost National
Initiative include discussion on the importance of using all available criminal statutes as essential
tools in charging decisions. Thus, this section is unnecessary.
23. Section 233
DOJ opposes the change to section 206 of the Trafficking Victims Protection
Reauthorization Act of 2005, which would remove the discretion of agencies in informing the
Senior Policy Operating Group (SPOG) of grants. Such a change could be read as giving the
SPOG oversight authority over grants. It also fails to take into consideration situations where
grtant-making agencies may be unable to notify the SPOG of the grant.
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