Karen Bass

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. The fight against child sex trafficking is a bipartisan issue, and I appreciate that both parties have come together today to support the development of legislation that would make a significant impact on one of the most vulnerable populations in our Nation. The Strengthening Our Child Welfare Response to Trafficking Act is an important step in ensuring that child welfare agencies have the proper systems in place to identify, assess, and document child victims of trafficking. Stories like those of Caroline and the other young girls in the child sex trafficking unit of the Los Angeles County Probation Department are critical to understanding exactly the effect our bill would have in laying the foundation of transforming the way our Nation responds to child sex trafficking. However, it is also important to recognize that this bill and the other bills on the floor today are steps on that journey, and there is still an enormous amount of work that needs to be done. Again, I would like to thank members of the Education and Workforce Committee and the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth for their continued commitment to advancing policies that help change the lives of children. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank my staff, Adriane Alicea, and especially my former deputy chief of staff, Jenny Wood, who did the lion's share of work to make this legislation happen, and without her hard work and dedication, this legislation would not be on the floor today. I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman an additional 1 minute.

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York, Ms. Yvette Clarke.

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Washington State, Mr. McDermott. (Mr. McDERMOTT asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Ms. BASS. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5081, the Strengthening Child Welfare Response to Trafficking Act of 2014, and I would like to thank Chairman Kline and Ranking Member Miller for their support and collaboration on creating momentum for this policy that will be a critical step towards preventing child sex trafficking. I appreciate both their insight and assistance in bringing this bill to the floor today. I also want to thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania, Representative Marino. He has been a tireless advocate for children in the foster care system. Mr. Marino, along with the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth cochairs, Representatives McDermott and Bachmann, all served as original cosponsors of the Strengthening Child Welfare Response to Trafficking Act, and their continuing commitment to transforming the child welfare system has brought national attention to the intersection between child sex trafficking and the child welfare system. The U.S. Department of Justice reports that more than 300,000 children in the country are at risk of sexual commercial exploitation and trafficking each year. These are 300,000 too many, and tragically, this number shows that a comprehensive and aggressive response is needed in order to combat child trafficking throughout the country. In my city, the Los Angeles County Probation Department reports that 61 percent of identified trafficking victims are foster youth. The Los Angeles STAR court is a specialized collaborative courthouse designed to serve commercially exploited youth and reports that 80 percent of these girls have been previously involved in the child welfare system. As cochair of the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth, I have had the opportunity to travel throughout the country as part of our nationwide listening tour. Unfortunately, the stories I have heard from advocates and youth is that children in the child welfare system continue to be preyed upon by traffickers who use their vulnerability as an opportunity to exploit them. The stories that emerge are those like Caroline's, a young girl who grew up in a household where she was physically, sexually, and emotionally abused. When Caroline was just 13 years old, a 35-year-old man attended a sporting event at her school and deceived her into believing that he loved her and would give her the attention she craved. Instead, this man began to sell Caroline to numerous men for sex. Throughout this time, she had many encounters with the child welfare system, but no one picked up that she was a victim of trafficking. The social workers did not have the training or the proper tools to assess that she needed specialized services. Our bill would ensure that children like Caroline do not slip through the cracks, as State and county child welfare departments have protection plans that will outline provisions and procedures to identify and assess all reports of children known or suspected to be victims of sex trafficking. State systems do not currently have the proper protections, services, or protocols to adequately serve those in the system who have been victims of trafficking. States also lack such support for victims who enter the child welfare system. In fact, during a site visit recently on the Foster Youth Caucus listening tour to Missouri, a law enforcement officer told us that he had no other option but to arrest the girls, to ensure that they receive the proper services. In Los Angeles, the child sex trafficking unit of the county probation department specifically addresses the needs of child victims, and it is the only such division in the country. I commend their critical work and commitment to ensure the trafficking victims receive the resources they need. We must not continue to arrest these children in order to provide them with these services. Our bill will be a first step toward ensuring that there are policies and procedures in place to connect child sex trafficking victims to public or private specialized services. Last year, in a meeting with children in the child sex trafficking unit of the Los Angeles County Probation Department, the girls all echoed the same sentiment. While they were grateful to have the resources they needed to begin to deal with their trauma, they felt stigmatized by having to be arrested in order to receive these services. Our bill would ensure that each State has a training plan for child protective service workers to appropriately respond to reports of trafficking, so that trafficked children would be provided the same resources as youth in the child welfare system and be classified as victims of crime, not as criminals. We have story after story across the country of children being raped and sold as if they were little more than objects, but we do not have the concrete data to help them find the appropriate services. H.R. 5081 requires that, within 1 year, the Department of Health and Human Services report to Congress on the prevalence and types of trafficking they have encountered. Many advocates believe that labor trafficking is also a critical issue with children in the child welfare system. The reality is we need hard data to evaluate what is happening to the children, so that proper resources can be allocated in the future. Our bill also allows States to establish the same policy and procedures for children if they are victims of labor trafficking. The report will also assess State practices used to identify and serve trafficking victims and Federal laws and policies that may prevent States from supporting these victims, including the absence of trafficking in the Federal definition of child abuse and neglect under CAPTA, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act. These critical steps to reforming our child welfare system will help ensure that victims are provided with the same resources and access as other children. I strongly urge my colleagues to support our bill and continue to build momentum to combat domestic child sex trafficking. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to make sure that we continue to address the threat of Boko Haram and to make sure we continue to work with the country of Nigeria. It has been over 2 months since Boko Haram kidnapped nearly 300 girls from their school in northern Nigeria. To many Americans, this was the first time they had heard of Boko Haram, even though the organization has been attacking, kidnapping, and killing innocent Nigerians since 2009, but Nigeria is much more than Boko Haram. I recently traveled to Nigeria with Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and 20 American companies on an energy business development trade mission. Nigeria is Africa's economic powerhouse that has incredible potential for partnership with American businesses. Nigeria recently surpassed South Africa as the largest economy in Africa, and with a population of nearly 170 million people, partnering with Nigerian businesses will benefit the American economy. Although we must continue our efforts to fight Boko Haram, we need to also make sure we engage Nigeria as our partner.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Madam Chair, I rise today to offer an amendment that will spur local job creation through federally-funded transit projects nationwide. Specifically, this amendment would provide the necessary flexibility for transit agencies to implement geographically targeted hiring and procurement preferences. My amendment will help to ensure construction and operations jobs contribute to the local economic development and of cities and towns where the transportation projects exist, instead of outsourcing these new jobs. Flexibility to implement local hire policies will also provide local and State agencies the ability to address unemployment in our hardest-hit regions. For example, the Los Angeles Transit Corridor Light Rail Line is currently under construction in Los Angeles. This project is expected to be a significant economic engine for development, generating an estimated 7,000 jobs during its 5-year construction period. Los Angeles Metro, our local transit agency, would like to encourage construction contractors to hire within the local community in order to help address unemployment in the area. However, according to current regulations, local transit agencies are restricted from implementing local hiring and procurement policies for federally-funded transportation projects, even when the vast majority of the project funds are State or locally generated. This is a commonsense amendment. It will limit burdensome regulations placed on local government agencies, and it will allow State and local agencies to more easily generate employment and economic development, and it preserves the competition mandates in our current grant rules governing Federal transit projects. Again, this is not a mandate. This just allows local agencies the flexibility. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BASS. Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. I am a proud cosponsor of this bill because I know it will play a vital role in our fight against child trafficking. First, I would like to commend Judge Poe for offering the bill and for his ongoing commitment to end child trafficking and fighting for victim rights. I would also like to commend Chairman Goodlatte, the ranking member, and Representative Maloney for their long work on this issue; and in the case of Representative Maloney, she has worked on this issue for many, many years. Unfortunately, hundreds of thousands of American children are trafficked each year. Our kids are robbed of their innocence and coerced into a life on the streets where they are repeatedly abused. The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act will provide much-needed grants to help provide necessary services to prevent exploitation and rebuild the lives of trafficking survivors. Specifically, the grants will be used to establish a variety of new programs, such as education, housing, job training, and placement for survivors; victims services programs, such as a 24-hour emergency social service response system and counseling; and specialized training programs for law enforcement officers, first responders, health care officials, and child welfare officials. Innovative and specialized courts with wraparound services like the STAR Court in Los Angeles County, which specifically focuses on girls and boys who are trafficked, will also be eligible for the grant funding. By reinvigorating the Crime Victims Fund, this bill also helps survivors recover from their trauma and develop normal, productive lives. Furthermore, the bill tackles demand by holding the buyers accountable for their actions. No longer will the perpetrators get away without a serious punishment to fit their crime. I personally refuse to call them ``johns,'' a term which provides cover. Instead, they are child abusers who are committing rape. This bill will help to ensure their charges reflect the horrific nature of child trafficking. Lastly, this bill will help protect our foster kids. It requires States to notify the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Ms. BASS. It requires States to notify the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about kids missing from foster care. This is important because foster children disappear into the shadows and no one tries to find them. Once these kids fall off the radar, they often become trafficking victims. Making sure that we are looking out for these kids is critical to protecting them from trafficking. We have to be vigilant, and we have to give these kids the care and attention they deserve. Madam Speaker, I am a proud cosponsor of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill, as well as next week welcoming nearly 70 foster youth to the Hill for the third annual Foster Youth Shadow Day.

Ms. BASS. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4058. I am proud to have worked with Chairman Reichert and have become an original cosponsor of the bill. I also want to acknowledge the leadership of Chairman Camp, as well as Ranking Members Doggett and Levin, to pass this important legislation, especially during National Foster Care Month. As cochair of the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth, I have traveled throughout the country as part of a national listening tour. It has been devastating to learn the children involved in the child welfare system, particularly those who experience multiple placements, are especially susceptible to coercion and manipulation by traffickers. In Los Angeles, where I am from, the Probation Department reports that hundreds of young people, all minors, have been identified as victims of sex trafficking. Sixty-one percent have been identified as foster youth. The Los Angeles STAR Court, which specializes in serving commercially sexually exploited youth, reports an even higher percentage: 80 percent of the young people have been foster youth. Unfortunately, the child welfare system as a whole has not truly recognized trafficking as a crisis within the foster youth population, nor incorporated protocols and systems to address the problem. Few child welfare employees have been adequately trained and prepared to identify or respond to child victims of trafficking. Fewer still have incorporated policies, protocols, and case management techniques to serve this population. Child welfare agencies are not documenting the prevalence of trafficking within the foster care population. Therefore, the scope of the challenge nationwide is unknown. To address these gaps, the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Improving Opportunities for Youth in Foster Care Act requires States to develop plans to provide services to child victims of trafficking, as well as to train case workers on how to identify victims and coordinate these services. The bill would also ensure that agencies using existing data collection mechanisms provide a national and State-by-State understanding of the prevalence of this problem. These are tremendous steps forward, and I look forward to continuing working with my colleagues in a bipartisan fashion to move legislation that will further prevent exploitation and protect foster youth and all children from trafficking. It is also significant that this bill helps to empower foster youth by giving foster parents more authority to make day-to-day decisions regarding their foster child's participation in age-appropriate activities. Many foster youth can never attend a prom, can't participate on a sports team, can't go to sleepovers--normal activities that all of our children do. The bill encourages States to more quickly move kids out of foster care and into permanent families, provide older children with a greater say in the development of their own case plans, and ensure that older foster youth have access to critical documents.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act. Safe harbor legislation is the first step in ensuring that children who are forced into the sex trade are treated as victims and not as criminals. First, as the lead authors of this bill, I would like to recognize my colleagues, Representatives Paulsen and Moore, for their commitment to preventing the exploitation of children. In 2012, in my town of Los Angeles, 170 girls were arrested and detained by probation and were later identified as trafficking victims. The average age of trafficked victims was 12 years old. At such a young age, these girls have survived immense trauma that no child should ever experience. In most cities, a large number of the girls are connected to the foster care system. We are supposed to be protecting these children. These are children we have removed from their homes, but far too often, instead of protecting these girls and finding them the right social services in order to get off the streets, our society continues to arrest them. They should never be charged with a crime, since many are minors and cannot legally consent to sex. As has been said, the word ``prostitute'' should never be used. They are not criminals; they are victims. Unfortunately, many of their troubles continue as they enter a juvenile justice system that often treats them as offenders and does not provide them with the resources they need in order to rebuild their lives. Even after serving their time and turning their lives around, young adults routinely leave custody or probation with criminal records, preventing them from starting careers. Simply put, the system sets them up for failure. To make matters worse, I have been told by leading judges in most States that a child must be arrested in order to attain many social services. Even in Los Angeles, where we have a model court and a probation department doing tremendous work to empower young survivors, we must arrest children before they receive intervention services. One can only imagine the emotional and psychological trauma that occurs when victims are continually told they are responsible for their own abuse. This must change. The Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act addresses one of the most pressing issues facing child victims of trafficking. I look forward to working with States to ensure that the safe harbor legislation throughout the county is meaningful and that appropriate services are provided, even if the child is not ``system-involved.'' I also look forward to identifying policies to ensure that the young people who have already been arrested have the opportunity to not only seal but completely expunge their records.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to offer an amendment along with fellow congressional Caucus on Foster Youth cochairs Tom Marino, Jim McDermott, and Michele Bachmann. I also want to thank the chairman and the ranking member for their leadership on this issue. This amendment will help ensure that foster and homeless youth are not unfairly disadvantaged in the enrollment process for charter schools. Across the country, charter schools often have requirements that don't exist in traditional public schools. For example, they may require parent interviews or parent involvement volunteer service during the academic year. Sadly, foster and homeless students might not be able to meet that requirement because they might not have adults in their life that are available to meet these standards, and foster parents may be unwilling or unable to do this. In turn, these youth may not be able to attend charter schools. This really isn't acceptable, especially since the academic achievement gap between foster youth and their peers is quite significant. In fact, a recent study by the Stuart Foundation in California indicated that test results for students in foster care fell into the two lowest performance levels for language arts and mathematics at twice the rate of the statewide student population. Additionally, the 2010 graduation rate for all high school seniors was 84 percent; but for students in foster care, it was just 58 percent, the lowest rate among at-risk student groups. Foster and homeless youth need more educational options, not less. This amendment will provide the nearly 400,000 foster youth and 1.7 million homeless youth in the United States with greater access to quality schools. In the spirit of National Foster Care Month this May, I want to thank the Democrats and Republicans in the Foster Youth Caucus who came together to author this commonsense but necessary amendment. I urge my colleagues to support the amendment.

Ms. BASS. Thank you, Mr. Ranking Member, and I urge my colleagues to support the amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BASS. I yield to the gentleman.

Ms. BASS. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2548, the Electrify Africa Act of 2014, a bill that directs the President to expand electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa. I would like to thank my good friends and colleagues, Chairman Ed Royce and Ranking Member Eliot Engel, and the committee staff, for all of the work that they have done on this important bill. H.R. 2548 directs the President to establish a multiyear strategy to assist countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to develop an appropriate mix of power solutions to provide sufficient electricity access to people living in rural and urban areas in order to alleviate poverty and drive economic growth. With greater access to electricity, Africa has the capacity to grow its economies, facilitating greater volumes of interregional, transcontinental, and international trade. Greater access to electricity also enables countries to expand human capacity and address the critical challenges of underemployment. Access to additional power will also help both individual countries and geographic regions address infrastructure challenges related to things such as roads, rail, and ports, all of which contributes to increasing the capacity of African nations and the continent as a whole. Greater access to electricity improves the quality of life for not only urban, but rural communities. Even though we are well into the 21st century, it is difficult to imagine two-thirds of the population of Sub-Saharan Africa lives without electricity, including more than 85 percent of Africans living in rural areas. Not having electricity means children study by candlelight and doctors and midwives delivering babies who must rely on flashlights. A life without electricity means education, health care, and the basic needs of millions of Africans suffer. In summary, I believe we are taking a giant step in the right direction by helping to address the issues of access to electrical power in Africa. This bill provides an opportunity to work with the governments and private sectors of African countries anxious to increase their individual and combined regional access to electricity. We all know that seven of the 10 fastest-growing economies are on the African continent. This is a great step forward toward addressing poverty and changing the paradigm in U.S.-Africa relations. I agree with the chair of the committee who talked about the reforms to OPIC. I would differ with my colleague from California though, because I do believe that as the economies of Africa strengthen, that increases the ability for those countries and businesses on the continent to do business with U.S. companies, which, in my opinion, also increases jobs in the United States. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 2548, the Electrify Africa Act of 2014.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, on March 5, 2014, I unintentionally opposed H.R. 2126, the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2014, which passed in the House 375-136. H.R. 2126 is an important piece of legislation that will increase America's annual energy savings, create jobs, and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I would like the record to note that I support H.R. 2126. I recognize that energy efficiency- focused legislation plays a key role in crafting a thriving, diversified national energy strategy. I am dedicated to strengthening our country's energy efficiency and look forward to working with my colleagues on this issue in the future.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that I be removed as a cosponsor of H.R. 1635, the National Commission on Federal Marijuana Policy Act of 2013.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, today, I pay tribute to two philanthropists of exceptional dedication and character--Anthony and Jeanne Pritzker. The Pritzkers have been committed to improving the lives of foster youth through the Anthony and Jeanne Pritzker Family Foundation. For more than a decade the Anthony and Jeanne Prtitzker Family Foundation has been making investments to strengthen important institutions that help the residents of Los Angeles. The foundation's grants have helped improve medical care, higher education, the environment, the arts and the foster care system in our city. These investments enrich our communities now, and for future generations. In 2012, Jeanne Pritzker started the nonprofit Foster Care Counts after being inspired by two teenagers they took into their own home, while raising her own children. Foster Care Counts has brought thousands of foster kids and families to their own home to celebrate family with their successful, Foster Mother's Day event. The Pritzkers recently gave a $3 million gift to UCLA to create an endowment that covers tutoring, mental health services, summer housing, unforeseen school expenses and other costs for UCLA students who were or are in foster care. They have long been contributors to UCLA's Guardian Scholars program, which provides support to former and current foster-care youth who are students at UCLA. This generous donation is helping ensure the continued success of this vulnerable population. Today we honor the Pritzkers, for fighting for those who sometimes do not have a voice, and making their lives a little better

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues in marking the 50th anniversary of the war on poverty. When I was 20 years old, I went to work for the Greater Los Angeles Community Action Agency, which was the administrative agency for the war on poverty in Los Angeles. This experience helped shape my commitment for public service. The war on poverty has had a real, lasting, and positive legacy; but there is still much more that needs to be done. According to the U.S. Census, roughly one in three Americans lived in poverty for at least 2 months from 2009 to 2011, one in three. Congress needs to make sure that we are doing all we can to help Americans by creating jobs and addressing the structural causes of poverty. Without a doubt, the war on poverty was more than a speech; it was a commitment backed up by public policy and resources to help Americans escape the tyranny of poverty. On this golden anniversary, let us return to this commitment in our laws, our programs, and our communities.

Ms. BASS

Ms. BASS. Thank you, Ranking Member Doggett. I rise today in support of the Promoting Adoption and Legal Guardianship for Children in Foster Care Act. First, I would like to commend Chairman Camp and Chairman Reichert and Ranking Members Levin and Doggett for their great work on this legislation and their ongoing commitment to our Nation's foster youth. As the cochair of the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth and the Congressional Caucus on Adoption, I sincerely appreciate your leadership and partnership on this issue. Since 1997, when the Adoption Incentives legislation became law, we have seen a significant reduction of the number of kids in foster care and, more importantly, an increased number of kids in forever families; yet there are still over 400,000 children in our Nation's child welfare system, many awaiting the stability and love of a permanent family. Unfortunately, studies show that foster youth, especially those who ``age out,'' are much more likely to experience poverty, unemployment, homelessness, incarceration, and compromised health after they leave foster care. Each year, nearly 30,000 teenagers age out of foster care without a permanent family. We know that this is unfair and unacceptable. We must strengthen policies that help to find forever families for our Nation's foster children, especially our older youth. I would like to focus my remarks on one of the noteworthy aspects of the bill--the enhanced support for legal guardianship. By making this investment, we will ultimately help more kids find permanent families, often with relatives. Today's foster care system looks much different than the child welfare system of previous decades. While children continue to be placed in foster homes with strangers or in group homes, more than half are placed with a relative caregiver, a grandmother, aunt, uncle, or older sibling. In fact, in my district in Los Angeles, relative caregivers are the largest foster care providers. Research shows that foster placement with relatives is good for children. They often allow children to stay in their schools, receive continued support from their community and culture, and feel connected to families that continue to love them. Despite the importance of relative caregivers, they face unique obstacles. Becoming a caregiver changes lives in every way--physically, emotionally, and financially. Stable middle class families or seniors who live on their life savings are often pushed to the brink of poverty because they have accepted the unexpected financial burden of caring for a child. As a Nation, we should take the extra steps needed to support family members that heroically step up to care for children in times of need. Additionally, I strongly support the Family Connection Grants reauthorized in this bill. These grants help to strengthen families, support kinship care, and prevent youth from entering or reentering foster care. Before my time in elected office, I was honored to advocate for kinship and guardianship resources alongside relative caregivers at the Community Coalition's Kinship in Action program. Today, I am greatly encouraged that the bill before us encourages permanent families of all kinds, supporting both adoption and guardianship throughout the Nation. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this bipartisan legislation.