H.R. 5607 — Introduced in House

I 113th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5607 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 18, 2014 Mr. Honda (for himself, Mr. Poe of Texas, Mr. Rodney Davis of Illinois, Ms. Bass, Mr. Grijalva, and Ms. McCollum) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To establish the United States Advisory Council on Human Trafficking to review Federal Government policy on human trafficking. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Voices of Human Trafficking Act of 2014. 2. United States Advisory Council on Human Trafficking (a) Establishment There is established the United States Advisory Council on Human Trafficking (referred to in this section as the Council), which shall provide advice and recommendations to the Senior Policy Operating Group (referred to in this section as the Group) and the President's Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. (b) Membership (1) Composition The Council shall be composed of not fewer than 8 individuals who are— (A) survivors of human trafficking; or (B) nongovernmental experts or professionals in the human trafficking field. (2) Equal representation To the extent practicable, the Council be comprised of an equal number of survivors and nongovernmental experts. (3) Appointment Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall appoint the members of the Council. (4) Term; reappointment Council members shall serve for terms of 2 years and may be reappointed by the President to serve additional 2-year terms. (c) Functions The Council shall— (1) be a nongovernmental advisory body to the Group; (2) meet, at its own discretion, not less frequently than annually or at the request of the Group to review Federal, State, and local government policy and programs intended to combat human trafficking, including programs related to the provision of services for victims; (3) formulate assessments and recommendations to ensure that United States policy and programming efforts conform, to the extent practicable, to the best practices in the field of human trafficking prevention; and (4) meet with the Group not less frequently than annually to formally present the Council's findings and recommendations. (d) Reports Every year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Council shall submit a report to the chair of the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking that contains the findings derived from the reviews conducted pursuant to subsection (c)(2). (e) Employee status Members of the Council— (1) shall not be considered employees of the United States Government for any purpose; and (2) shall not receive compensation other than reimbursement of travel expenses and per diem allowance in accordance with section 5703 of title 5, United States Code. (f) Nonapplicability of FACA The Council shall not be subject to the requirements under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). 3. Sunset This section shall cease to be effective on September 30, 2020.