Curbing Child Sex Trafficking by Monitoring Sex Offenders' Travel Plans (H.R. 4573)
Do you support or oppose this bill?
What is H.R. 4573?
(Updated July 13, 2017)
This bill deals with registered sex offenders seeking to travel abroad and sex offenders from other countries seeking entrance into America. Specifically, the bill, if enacted, would require the offender to provide advance notice to authorities, were that offender seeking to travel outside the United States. The bill would also ask—but could not force—foreign governments that keep a sex offender list to notify the U.S. when those offenders seek to cross into the United States. Notably, the bill restricts the validity of U.S. passports of sex offenders to one year, revoke the passport of any U.S. citizen convicted of a child sex offense abroad, and establish the Angel Watch Center—a new component of the Child Exploitation Investigations Unit of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also known as ICE. The Angel Watch Center will:
- Receive information on travel by child-sex
offenders.
- Transmit notice of impending or current
international travel by child-sex offenders to the Secretary of State,
accompanied by an advisory regarding whether or not the period of validity of
the passport of the child-sex offender should be limited to one year or such
period of time as the Secretary of State shall determine appropriate.
- Establish a system to maintain and archive all
relevant information, including the response of destination countries to
notifications under where available, and decisions not to
transmit notification abroad.
- Establish an annual review process to ensure that the Center is
consistent in procedures to provide notification to destination countries or
not to provide notification to destination countries, as appropriate.
Argument in favor
An important step toward the global prevention of child sex trafficking and sex tourism. Works with established nonprofit and faith-based organizations already experienced in preventing sex tourism and child exploitation.
Argument opposed
Would only work if foreign governments are willing to participate. Concern about due process violations, in regard to U.S. sex offenders.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would have the likelihood of strengthening multinational efforts at curbing sex tourism and child sex trafficking by limiting the mobility of registered sex offenders both into and out of the United States.
Cost of H.R. 4573
A CBO cost estimate is not currently available.
Additional Info
Media:
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) Press Release
Of Note:
-According to a 2010 report by the Government Accountability Office entitled "Current Situation Results in Thousands of Passports Issued to Registered Sex Offenders" at least 4,500 U.S. passports were issued to registered sex offenders in fiscal year 2008.
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