YourVoice.Now Summary
Workers & JobsTransparency & AccountabilityDomestic workers for foreign diplomats would get yearly rights briefings, and U.S. anti-trafficking programs abroad would run through 2030.
Workers & Jobs
Today the State Department signs up these workers in person only in some places; the bill would expand that across the country. Each worker would get a rights pamphlet and the National Human Trafficking Hotline number on arrival, then every year.
The employers are embassy staff and staff of international groups who bring in nannies, cooks, and other help on A-3 and G-5 visas. They would have to tell the State Department each year what they paid, which makes underpayment easier to spot.
The State Department would have to tell embassies and international groups what U.S. labor law requires of them. It would also spell out steps the Secretary of State may take after abuse: suspended visas, criminal charges, money damages, or a visa pulled for good.
Transparency & Accountability
The Program to End Modern Slavery gives grants to groups that often pay smaller groups to do the work. Their names would go on a public website, or, if a group reports a safety risk, to Congress in secret.
Grants under that program could no longer be handed out directly. Each one would have to go through open competition, with the usual notice to Congress before the money goes out.
Each year the State Department ranks countries on how hard they fight trafficking, and a low rank can cost a country U.S. aid. Within 30 days of that report, it would have to brief House and Senate committees on which countries moved up or down.
The worst-rated countries are supposed to lose some U.S. aid, but the President can waive that. The State Department would have to tell House and Senate committees within 30 days, and give the reason for each waiver.
Aid to the worst-rated countries is supposed to stop, but the President could keep any of it flowing. That call would be made by October 1 each year, with no report to Congress required.
More about this bill
Most people in the United States would see no change in daily life from this bill. It deals with U.S. work against human trafficking in other countries. The people it would reach first are housekeepers and nannies brought here by foreign diplomats. They hold A-3 or G-5 visas. Each year they would get a description of their rights under federal and state law. They would also get the number for the National Human Trafficking Hotline. The State Department would sign them up in person, in every part of the country. Their employers would have to report the wages they pay, once a year. The bill would raise the yearly ceiling on money for these programs. It would go from $65 million to $102.5 million a year, for 2026 through 2030. Up to $37.5 million of that could go to the Program to End Modern Slavery. That program would run through 2029. Another $17 million a year would fund the State Department office that runs this work, up from $13.8 million. Groups that win those grants would have to post online the names of smaller groups they pay. Every grant would have to be awarded through open competition. Money for International Megan's Law would also run through 2029. That law warns other countries when a registered sex offender plans to travel there. Countries that fail to fight trafficking would face more money pressure. A watch list for countries with serious problems would get a new name and a narrower test for who lands on it. The worst-rated countries would also face pushback on loans. The President would have to tell U.S. officials at the World Bank, the IMF, and similar lenders to vote no. The bill lists aid that would keep flowing anyway: disaster relief, food aid, health programs, and refugee aid. The President could also protect any other aid by calling it important to U.S. interests. That call would be made by October 1 each year. U.S. disaster aid would have to be planned so it does not raise trafficking risk. The State Department would have to brief Congress within 30 days when rankings change or a country wins a waiver.
Congressional Summary
International Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2025This bill reauthorizes programs and activities that combat international human trafficking and updates various elements of the federal framework to combat international human trafficking.Specifically, the bill reauthorizes through FY2029 programs and activities at various federal departments and agencies to combat international trafficking and reduce the prevalence of modern slavery. The bill also reauthorizes International Megan’s Law through FY2029. Among its provisions, the law requires sex offenders to provide certain information about their intended travel outside of the United States.Additionally, the bill updates the federal framework to combat international trafficking.First, with respect to country rankings for anti-trafficking efforts, the bill narrows the types of countries on the Tier 2 Watch List and increases the length of time a country may remain on the Tier 2 Watch List after being downgraded to the lowest ranking and then reinstated to the watch list. (The Tier 2 Watch List includes countries that are making significant efforts toward meeting the minimum standards to eliminate human trafficking but still have a significant or significantly increasing number of victims or fail to show improvement.)Second, the bill requires the Department of State to brief Congress on (1) countries that are downgraded or upgraded in the rankings, and (2) countries that receive a waiver from being downgraded. Third, the bill requires counter-trafficking strategies, activities, and efforts to be further incorporated into U.S. foreign assistance.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- Senate
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in Senate
- Action Date
- 2025-08-01
- Date Added
- 2026-06-03
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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