Human Trafficking and Exploitation Prevention Training Act
H.R. 1185, the Human Trafficking and Exploitation Prevention Training Act, would create a national demonstration program to train students, teachers, and school personnel to understand, recognize, prevent, and respond to signs of human trafficking and child exploitation in K-12 settings. The program would be run by the Director of the Office on Trafficking in Persons within the Administration for Children and Families, and would involve approved nonprofit vendors developing curricula and providing training, along with grants to eligible entities (schools and related organizations) to implement the training. The bill also requires data collection and annual reporting to Congress, while safeguarding students’ and survivors’ privacy. It authorizes funding of $15 million per year for fiscal years 2026–2029 specifically for the demonstration project.
Key Points
- 1Establishes a demonstration project under the Public Health Service Act to train elementary and secondary school students, teachers, and school personnel to recognize and respond to signs of human trafficking and child exploitation.
- 2Creates a two-part vendor/grantee system: (a) nonprofit organizations vetted as “verified vendors” to develop and implement curricula; (b) grants to eligible entities (including schools and local/state educational agencies) to deliver the training in K-12 settings.
- 3Requires rigorous vendor criteria, emphasizing age-appropriate, culturally competent, evidence-based curricula, university-backed validation, inclusive content for all students, and a scalable Train-the-Trainer model that uses appropriate technology and measurement.
- 4Mandates data collection and reporting on program reach and impact, including numbers trained, at-risk and survivor-identified individuals (with privacy protections to avoid sharing identifying information), and best practices; annual reports to Congress.
- 5Targets geographic areas with high trafficking prevalence and serves underserved or at-risk youth populations (e.g., homeless youth, foster youth, runaways); funds must be used for K-12-serving entities; coordination with multiple federal agencies is required to identify priority areas.
- 6Authorizes $15 million per year (FY 2026–FY 2029) specifically for the demonstration project funding; the act also reconfigures existing sections to accommodate subsection (j) (the new demonstration project).