S. 3901 — Introduced in Senate

II 117th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3901 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 22, 2022Ms. Cortez Masto introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To provide grants to transit operators and airports for human trafficking awareness, education, and prevention efforts, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Reduce Human Trafficking through Transportation Act. 2. Department of Transportation human trafficking prevention grants (a) Urbanized area formula grants (1) In general Of the amounts made available for each fiscal year to carry out section 5307 of title 49, United States Code, the Secretary of Transportation (referred to in this section as the Secretary) shall set aside $5,000,000 to provide grants to entities described in paragraph (2)(A) to address human trafficking awareness, education, and prevention efforts, including by— (A) coordinating human trafficking prevention efforts across multimodal transportation operations within a community; and (B) accomplishing the best practices and recommendations provided by the Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking. (2) Distribution (A) In general The Secretary shall distribute amounts set aside under paragraph (1) to— (i) the 50 transit operators in the United States with the highest annual ridership, based on the most recent data available; and (ii) as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, a transit operator not described in clause (i) that serves an area with a high prevalence of human trafficking, on application of the transit operator. (B) Priority; considerations In distributing the amounts under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— (i) give priority in grant amounts to entities referred to in subparagraph (A) that serve regions with a higher prevalence of human trafficking; and (ii) take into consideration the effect the amounts would have on surrounding areas. (C) Consultation In distributing the amounts under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with the Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking in determining the amounts to be distributed to each recipient to ensure the best use of the funds. (b) Airport improvement program (1) In general Of the amounts made available for each fiscal year for the airport improvement program established under subchapter I of chapter 471 of title 49, United States Code, the Secretary shall set aside $5,000,000 to provide grants to entities described in paragraph (2)(A) to address human trafficking awareness, education, and prevention efforts, including by— (A) coordinating human trafficking prevention efforts across multimodal transportation operations within a community; and (B) accomplishing the best practices and recommendations provided by the Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking. (2) Distribution (A) In general The Secretary shall distribute amounts set aside under paragraph (1) to— (i) the 50 airports in the United States with the highest number of passenger enplanements annually, based on the most recent data available; and (ii) as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, an airport not described in clause (i) that serves an area with a high prevalence of human trafficking, on application of the airport. (B) Priority; considerations In distributing the amounts under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— (i) give priority in grant amounts to entities referred to in subparagraph (A) that serve regions with a higher prevalence of human trafficking; and (ii) take into consideration the effect the amounts would have on surrounding areas. (C) Consultation In distributing the amounts under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with the Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking in determining the amounts to be distributed to each recipient to ensure the best use of the funds.