Despite mandate, few sex traffickers go to prison

FAIRNESS FOR CRIME VICTIMS ACT OF 2015 (S. 1495)
Toomey, Enzi, Corker, Crapo, Ayotte, Hatch, Gardner, Johnson, Sessions, Perdue,
Cotton, Tillis, Portman, Lankford, Risch, Rubio, Flake, Scott
What is the Crime Victims Fund?
Congress created the Crime Victims Fund in 1984, based on a simple idea: Money the government collects from those who commit crimes should be used to help those victimized by crime. Each year, criminal fines and penalties collected by the federal government are deposited into the Crime Victims Fund. The Fund receives no taxpayer dollars.
DOJ disburses money from the Crime Victims Fund to States and to victims service groups (such as Child Advocacy Centers, domestic violence shelters, and rape crisis centers) to support victim compensation and assistance programs. Under federal law, money deposited into the Crime Victims Fund may only be used to assist crime victims.
Problem
For the first 15 years, the Crime Victims Fund worked as it should: Each year, the Crime Victims Fund disbursed what it brought in the prior year.
That changed in fiscal year 2000. Since then, each year, Congress takes hundreds of millions of dollars that, under federal law, must go to victims of child abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault, and other crimes. Congress uses this money for other discretionary spending—despite the fact that federal law says money deposited into the Fund may only be used to assist crime victims through the Fund.
For example, from fiscal year 2010 through fiscal year 2014, the Crime Victims Fund collected $12 billion, but gave crime victims only $3.6 billion (or 30%). Congress used the $8.4 billion difference for other, discretionary spending in the CJS Appropriations Bill.
The Fairness for Victims of Crime Act:
• Return Honesty to the Fund:
• The bill provides that, each year, Congress disburse the average of the past 3 years’ deposits into the Fund.
• This essentially returns the Crime Victims Fund to disbursing what it brings in, with some smoothing to prevent fluctuations.
• Preserves the ~$10.5B CHIMP/offset.
• Enforcement mechanism:
If an Appropriations bill, conference report, or amendment provides that the Fund shall disburse less than the average of the past three years, then:
• House: The offending provision shall not be in order
• Senate: Any Senator may raise a point of order against the offending provision.
• Can be waived only by the votes of 60 Senators.
• Strips the offending provision; it does not bring down the entire bill.
• Increase Funding for Victims of Crime
• Nationwide, disbursals will rise from $745M in FY14 to $2.6B in FY16
• Funds for victim service groups (e.g., domestic violence shelters, child advocacy centers, rape crisis centers) will approximately quadruple vs. 2014 levels

America's Child Sex Trafficking Victim

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-lois-lee/americas-child-sex-trafficking_b_3762809.html?utm_source=May+2015+Mailing&utm_campaign=995-100-0276+&utm_medium=email

Kevin Costner speaks up for victims of sex trafficking

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20150410-kevin-costner-speaks-up-for-victims-of-sex-trafficking.ece

NEW WARNING ABOUT SEX TRAFFICKING IN FLORIDA

Ehttp://www.winknews.com/2015/04/29/new-warning-about-sex-trafficking-in-florida/nter text

Senate unanimously passes Human Trafficking Bill after long delay

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/23/us/politics/senate-vote-on-human-trafficking-bill.html?_r=0

IN THE NEWS

Leaders sound alarm about human trafficking of girls in South Florida

By Anthony ManSun Sentinel

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/fl-wasserman-schultz-district-20150202-story.html

State Looks To Ramp Up Fight Against Human Trafficking
http://miami.cbslocal.com/2015/03/03/state-looks-to-ramp-up-fight-against-human-trafficking/

Sex-trafficking suspects arrested in N. Florida, feds say

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-sex-trafficking-charges-florida-feds-20151102-story.html

Florida must change its backward-thinking approach on kids in prison

http://jacksonville.com/opinion/editorials/2015-10-27/story/florida-must-change-its-backward-thinking-approach-kids-prison

Training the front lines in the fight against sex trafficking

http://www.wdaz.com/news/north-dakota/3903884-training-front-lines-fight-against-sex-trafficking

U.S. Judge Rules Sexual Trafficking Is Not a Violent Crime

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/09/01/u-s-judge-rules-sexual-trafficking-is-not-a-violent-crime.html

CNN, Jada Pinkett Smith Join Forces for Special Report on Sex Trafficking

http://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2015/07/14/cnn-jada-pinkett-smith-join-forces-for-special-report-on-sex-trafficking/

FLORIDA CRACKING DOWN ON MASSAGE PARLORS

http://www.browardpalmbeach.com/news/florida-cracking-down-on-massage-parlors-7097621

HUMAN TRAFFICKING SHELTER COMING TO MIAMI

http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/editorials/article25718287.html

DJJ Secretary Daly Unveils Expansion Of Agency's Anti-Human Trafficking Tool

http://news.wgcu.org/post/djj-secretary-daly-unveils-expansion-agencys-anti-human-trafficking-tool

Hollywood to limit massage parlors

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/hollywood/fl-massage-parlor-rules-hollywood-20150520-story.html

Bondi Convenes Statewide Council On Human Trafficking

http://spacecoastdaily.com/2015/06/bondi-convenes-statewide-council-on-human-trafficking/

Sex trafficking in South Florida: WPTV gains exclusive access to sheriff investigation

http://www.wptv.com/news/local-news/investigations/sex-trafficking-in-south-florida-wptv-investigators-gain-exclusive-access-to-police-investigation

A heavy toll for the victims of human trafficking

http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/25/us/miami-sex-trafficking/index.html

First Coast man who trafficked underage girls speaks out

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/story/news/features/2015/04/28/man-who-trafficked-underage-girls-on-first-coast-speaks-out/26551791/

October 2015 marks the 15th anniversary of the enactment of the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA). This landmark legislation, reauthorized four times, laid the foundation for significant efforts in the United States to combat human trafficking and support trafficking survivors. At this important juncture, we celebrate the TVPA while acknowledging that the prevention of human trafficking and the promotion of well-being among survivors requires improved, dedicated resources for health and social services. Human trafficking is a healthcare issue, with severe and long-lasting adverse consequences for the health, development, and well-being of victims and survivors. Current U.S. Government funding is insufficient to meet the health, housing, and rehabilitative care needs of victims and survivors. The collective voice of the health sector must urge for greater U.S. investment in programs that prevent human trafficking, and provide comprehensive health services to victims of violence.
Please sign on to HEAL’s 15th Anniversary of TVPA letter to President Obama, urging the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to request increased funds in the President’s FY17 budget to combat human trafficking and forced labor.