WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today secured the committee’s unanimous approval of his amendment to make clear that domestic and international private businesses are expected to take every reasonable step to prevent and combat child sex trafficking.

Flake’s amendment, which was added to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, builds on his bipartisan effort with U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), John McCain (R-Ariz.) and others to advance the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act. That bill aims to hold private businesses that knowingly facilitate child sex trafficking – such as Backpage.com – accountable and ensures justice for victims of sex trafficking. To read the Arizona Republic’s recent editorial supporting the bill: “John McCain and Jeff Flake are right to tackle Backpage.com” click here.

The Stop  Enabling Sex Traffickers Act is the result of a two-year Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI) inquiry led by Portman and McCaskill which culminated in a report Backpage.com’s Knowing Facilitation of Online Sex Trafficking. That report concluded Backpage.com knowingly facilitated criminal sex trafficking of vulnerable women and young girls and then covered up evidence of these crimes in order to increase its own profits. The measure has been endorsed by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and other anti-trafficking advocates and law enforcement organizations. 

“Child sex trafficking is an egregious offense against human rights that I am committed to bring to an end,” said Flake. “To accomplish that goal, Republicans and Democrats will need to work together and speak with one voice to hold accountable those bad actors who would facilitate this horrible practice. The committee’s unanimous approval of this amendment marks a significant step forward for that growing, bipartisan effort.”

Flake successfully offered another amendment to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act to require the State Department to notify foreign governments when their country’s status in State’s annual Trafficking in Persons report is downgraded to Tier Two Watch List. Such a downgrade puts those countries at risk of losing federal assistance if they do not take measures to fight human trafficking inside their borders and Flake’s amendment would ensure that the leaders of those countries are aware of the implications of such a downgrade, and provided with information on how to remedy it.   

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