[Pages H1223-H1227]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

FIGHT ILLICIT NETWORKS AND DETECT TRAFFICKING ACT

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 502) to require the Comptroller General of the United States
to carry out a study on how virtual currencies and online marketplaces
are used to buy, sell, or facilitate the financing of goods or services
associated with sex trafficking or drug trafficking, and for other
purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:

H.R. 502

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,

[[Page H1224]]

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Fight Illicit Networks and
Detect Trafficking Act'' or the ``FIND Trafficking Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

The Congress finds the following:
(1) According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
2017 National Drug Threat Assessment, transnational criminal
organizations are increasingly using virtual currencies.
(2) In its 2015 National Money Laundering Risk Assessment,
the Department of the Treasury concluded: ``The development
of virtual currencies is an attempt to meet a legitimate
market demand. According to a Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
economist, United States consumers want payment options that
are versatile and that provide immediate finality. No United
States payment method meets that description, although cash
may come closest. Virtual currencies can mimic cash's
immediate finality and anonymity and are more versatile than
cash for online and cross-border transactions, making virtual
currencies vulnerable for illicit transactions.''.
(3) Virtual currencies have become a prominent method to
pay for goods and services associated with illegal sex
trafficking and drug trafficking, which are two of the most
detrimental and troubling illegal activities facilitated by
online marketplaces.
(4) Online marketplaces, including the dark web, have
become a prominent platform to buy, sell, and advertise for
illicit goods and services associated with sex trafficking
and drug trafficking.
(5) According to the International Labour Organization, in
2016, 4.8 million people in the world were victims of forced
sexual exploitation, and in 2014, the global profit from
commercial sexual exploitation was $99 billion.
(6) In 2016, within the United States, the Center for
Disease Control estimated that there were 64,000 deaths
related to drug overdose, and the most severe increase in
drug overdoses were those associated with fentanyl and
fentanyl analogs (synthetic opioids), which amounted to over
20,000 overdose deaths.
(7) According to the United States Department of the
Treasury 2015 National Money Laundering Risk Assessment, an
estimated $64 billion is generated annually from United
States drug trafficking sales.
(8) Illegal fentanyl in the United States originates
primarily from China, and it is readily available to purchase
through online marketplaces.

SEC. 3. GAO STUDY.

(a) Study Required.--The Comptroller General of the United
States shall conduct a study on how virtual currencies and
online marketplaces are used to facilitate sex and drug
trafficking. The study shall consider--
(1) how online marketplaces, including the dark web, are
being used as platforms to buy, sell, or facilitate the
financing of goods or services associated with sex
trafficking or drug trafficking (specifically, opioids and
synthetic opioids, including fentanyl, fentanyl analogs, and
any precursor chemicals associated with manufacturing
fentanyl or fentanyl analogs) destined for, originating from,
or within the United States;
(2) how financial payment methods, including virtual
currencies and peer-to-peer mobile payment services, are
being utilized by online marketplaces to facilitate the
buying, selling, or financing of goods and services
associated with sex or drug trafficking destined for,
originating from, or within the United States;
(3) how virtual currencies are being used to facilitate the
buying, selling, or financing of goods and services
associated with sex or drug trafficking, destined for,
originating from, or within the United States, when an online
platform is not otherwise involved;
(4) how illicit funds that have been transmitted online and
through virtual currencies are repatriated into the formal
banking system of the United States through money laundering
or other means;
(5) the participants (state and non-state actors)
throughout the entire supply chain that participate in the
buying, selling, or financing of goods and services
associated with sex or drug trafficking (through online
marketplaces or virtual currencies) destined for, originating
from, or within the United States;
(6) Federal and State agency efforts to impede the buying,
selling, or financing of goods and services associated with
sex or drug trafficking through online marketplaces or
virtual currencies that are destined for, originating from,
or within the United States, including efforts to prevent the
proceeds from sex or drug trafficking from entering the
United States banking system through online marketplaces or
virtual currencies; and
(7) to what extent can the immutable and traceable nature
of virtual currencies contribute to the tracking and
prosecution of illicit funding.
(b) Scope.--For the purposes of the study required under
subsection (a), the term ``sex trafficking'' means the
recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, obtaining,
patronizing, or soliciting of a person for the purpose of a
commercial sex act that is induced by force, fraud, or
coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act
has not attained 18 years of age.
(c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the
United States shall submit to the Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on
Financial Services of the House of Representatives a report
summarizing the results of the study required under
subsection (a), together with any recommendations for
legislative or regulatory action that would improve the
efforts of Federal agencies to impede the use of virtual
currencies and online marketplaces in facilitating sex and
drug trafficking.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Waters) and the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr.
McHenry) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.

General Leave

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from California?
There was no objection.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I support H.R. 502, the Fight Illicit Networks and
Detect Trafficking Act, which would advance efforts to counter the
illicit uses of virtual currencies and marketplaces in drug trafficking
and sex trafficking.
The study in the report designed to drive action from government and
its partners is needed now more than ever.
In 2017, more than 70,000 Americans died of drug overdoses, a 10
percent rise from the previous year. The percentage of those deaths
from synthetic drugs like fentanyl and its analogs increased sharply as
well. It is said that Americans are now more likely to die from opioid
overdose than a car wreck, dropping our collective life expectancy.
Further, the International Labor Organization estimates that there
are 4.8 million people trapped in forced sexual exploitation globally.
Online marketplaces and cryptocurrencies facilitate this abuse, not
just abroad, but in our own communities, where victims are exploited by
bad actors, forcing men, women, and children into horrifying situations
from which it is difficult to escape.
The bill would require the GAO to study how online marketplaces and
virtual currencies are being used for drug and sex trafficking.

{time} 1715

It will examine the participants in these trafficking supply chains
and how they cash in and out of their digital marketplaces, returning
their illicitly gained proceeds to the formal banking system.
The study will also tell us about existing Federal and State efforts
to impede such activities, so we can identify how to better tackle
these crimes.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Vargas and Congresswoman Wagner for
introducing this bipartisan legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I urge support for this bill, and I reserve the balance
of my time.
Mr. McHENRY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 502, the FIND Trafficking Act.
Consider this: In 2017 alone, more than 47,000 Americans died from
opioid overdoses. Additionally, it is estimated that the total number
of human trafficking victims in the U.S. reached into the hundreds of
thousands.
These shocking numbers point to a deep, systemic issue happening
right in our backyards, where bad actors use any means necessary--even
financial products--in order to lure people into horrible situations.
One of the ways they do this is by using virtual currencies to evade
the oversight of institutions, like government agencies.
While virtual currencies may possess a great opportunity for society,
we don't quite know the extent of their utility in human trafficking.
Mr. Speaker, these virtual currencies are one of the most versatile
payment options available today, yet they are among the least
understood. We need to do more work in order to understand their
utility and their opportunity.
It is precisely this lack of understanding that risks making virtual
currencies ripe for exploitation by these bad actors engaged in human
trafficking and the sale of illicit drugs. In its 2017 National Drug
Assessment, the

[[Page H1225]]

Drug Enforcement Administration concluded that transnational criminal
organizations are increasingly using virtual currencies for illicit
activities, including drug trafficking. This includes illicit
transactions with China, as well as the sale and purchase of narcotics,
including those involved in our country's opioid epidemic.
This bipartisan legislation before us is an instrumental first step
toward analyzing how virtual currencies and online marketplaces are
used to buy, sell, or facilitate the financing of goods and services
associated with human and drug trafficking.
By directing the Government Accountability Office to study how
virtual currencies are linked to the supply chain of drugs and human
trafficking, this bill will give lawmakers insight in how to sever that
link. We need to know how virtual currencies are being used; the scope
of their use; and, most importantly, how our Federal and State agencies
must respond, and can respond, to impede their use for illicit
activities.
Let me add, Mr. Speaker, that nothing in this legislation is meant to
demonize the use or the development of virtual currencies for
legitimate economic activity. As my colleagues know, there are few
Members more committed than I am to how new technologies can facilitate
commerce and growth. But in order for such technologies to flourish, we
need a rigorous discussion on the risks in enabling new routes for
illicit finance.
We need to understand that as policymakers. This bill is important
because it enables us to have the measurement tools necessary for us to
smartly legislate in this area. Mainstream acceptance of innovation
depends on mainstream forms of accountability, and this bill does just
that.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Vargas) for
his sponsorship of the bill. I thank my vice ranking member on the
Financial Services Committee, my second in command on the Financial
Services Committee, Mrs. Wagner of Missouri, for her sponsorship and
leadership on this important issue of human trafficking that she is so
very committed to and so smart on legislating around. I thank them both
for setting the right tone for our committee jurisdiction, smart
legislating, and reaching across the aisle. I know they will continue
to lead the fight against trafficking as Members of the House Financial
Services Committee this Congress, as they have in previous years as
well.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for this bill, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
California (Mr. Vargas), the sponsor of the bill.
Mr. VARGAS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairwoman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support H.R. 502,
the Fight Illicit Networks and Detect Trafficking Act, or, as you
heard, the FIND Trafficking Act.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Waters and Ranking Member McHenry for
their support and their guidance of this legislation.
I also especially thank my colleague, Representative Wagner, for her
leadership on this issue and for agreeing to co-lead this commonsense,
narrowly tailored legislation. I thank her for her guidance and her
leadership.
As you may know, a virtual currency is a digital representation of
value that can be digitally traded. Since the creation of bitcoin, the
first and most widely known example of a cryptocurrency, thousands of
cryptocurrencies have emerged that are designed to serve a variety of
purposes.
Some forms of virtual currency provide a digital alternative to cash
that lacks the oversight of a government or a central bank, and,
potentially, offers greater anonymity than conventional payment
systems.
Just as virtual currencies have grown in use in legitimate commerce,
as we heard from the ranking member, they have also, unfortunately,
become an increasingly popular financial payment method for criminals.

Virtual currencies have been, and continue to be, exploited to pay
for goods and services associated with illicit sex and drug
trafficking. These are two of the most detrimental and troubling
illegal activities sold online.
According to the DEA 2017 National Drug Assessment, transnational
criminal organizations are increasingly using virtual currencies, due
to their ease of use and the anonymity they provide. While evidence
points to a growth of virtual currencies as a payment method for
illicit sex and drug trafficking, the true scope of the problem and
potential solutions have not been fully established.
According to the International Labour Organization, in 2016, 4.8
million people in the world were victims of forced sexual exploitation,
and, in 2014, the global profit from commercial sexual exploitation was
$99 billion.
Unfortunately, virtual currencies are also being used as a payment
method for transnational drug traffickers. As we all know too well, and
as was stated here, the United States is struggling to combat the
rising number of lives cut short by tragic opioid use. In 2016 alone,
the CDC estimated that there were 64,000 deaths in the U.S. related to
drug overdose, and the most severe increase in drug overdoses were
those associated with fentanyl and fentanyl analogs.
Fentanyl is an extremely deadly opioid, about 50 to 100 times more
potent than morphine. Fentanyl is being illicitly manufactured in China
and Mexico, with most of the illegal fentanyl in the United States
originating primarily in China, and it is readily available to purchase
through online marketplaces.
If we are to craft effective regulatory and legislative solutions to
combat these transnational criminal organizations, we need to fully
study and analyze how virtual currencies and online marketplaces are
used to facilitate sex and drug trafficking to determine how to best
eliminate their use.
H.R. 502, the FIND Trafficking Act of 2019, requires the Comptroller
General of the United States to: one, carry out a study on how virtual
currencies and online marketplaces are used to facilitate sex or drug
trafficking; and, two, make recommendations to Congress on legislative
and regulatory actions that would impede the use of virtual currencies
and online marketplaces in facilitating sex and drug trafficking.
It is my sincere hope that this bill is a first step, as we heard,
toward crafting bipartisan legislation to impede and, eventually,
eliminate the use of virtual currencies by transnational criminal
organizations to facilitate drug and sex trafficking.
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for the bipartisan nature of this
bill--in particular, again, Representative Wagner--and I urge my
colleagues to support the bill.
Mr. McHENRY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Missouri (Mrs. Wagner), the vice ranking member of the House Financial
Services Committee, who will be the ranking member of the Subcommittee
on Diversity and Inclusion on the Financial Services Committee as well.
Mrs. WAGNER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the vice ranking member for
yielding. And I thank my friend and colleague from California for his
leadership and support on this legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support the FIND
Trafficking Act. The fight against online sex trafficking has been one
of the most important endeavors since I first came to Congress. I have
worked with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to update our
Nation's laws to effectively combat contemporary methods used to
exploit our Nation's women and children.
The fact of the matter is that sex trafficking has moved from the
streets to the internet. Traffickers advertise, buy, and sell women and
children, using online marketplaces with impunity.
Last April, my Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act, or FOSTA, became
law, and many websites engaged in sex trafficking shut down to avoid
liability for their crimes. This was a tremendous step forward, but our
job is not finished.
The reality is that sex and drug trafficking are extremely
profitable, and there are still websites that are knowingly
facilitating criminal activity. Traffickers are increasingly using the
anonymity of virtual currencies, like bitcoin and others, to finance
their networks of exploitation, both online and off-line. These
criminals use virtual currencies to avoid detection and

[[Page H1226]]

prosecution, a practice that creates an unprecedented challenge for
financial regulators and law enforcement.
This is a new playing field, and we need better enforcement of
existing laws and more information about how criminals are using
virtual currencies to finance their operations. We need to know how
illicit funds are being repatriated into the formal banking system. We
need to understand whether Federal and State agencies have the tools
they need to stop criminal profits from entering our financial system.
We also need to know how drug traffickers are using the internet to
sell opioids, including deadly fentanyl. We need to understand how
websites are using payment methods to facilitate the sale of illegal
activities.

This is why Congressman Juan Vargas and I have introduced the FIND
Trafficking Act. The legislation would give us valuable data on how
traffickers are anonymously transferring money to facilitate sex and
drug trafficking.
The FIND Trafficking Act will help construct a web of intelligence
necessary to protect victims and to prosecute traffickers. Congressman
Juan Vargas has been a tremendous leader in this space, and I thank him
for all the work that he is doing to stop criminal enterprises from
exploiting vulnerable populations.
Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join us in standing with the
hundreds of thousands of Americans who have been affected by drug and
sex trafficking.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Michigan (Ms. Tlaib).
Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Waters for yielding time.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in support of the FIND Trafficking
Act.
Human trafficking is pervasive across the United States and the
world. My own home State of Michigan ranks in the top 10th of States
when it comes to this issue.
Sex and drug trafficking is a horrific experience for some of the
most vulnerable populations, including children and those who have
experienced trauma and violence in the past.
Human trafficking takes form in many ways, ways that we sometimes may
not even know exists. With virtual currency becoming more and more
common, along with the vast, unknown happenings on the dark web, it is
important for us to have access to information to stop this kind of
illegal trafficking.

{time} 1730

We must find ways to limit financial options for those who seek to
exploit and harm others through trafficking. The FIND Trafficking Act
will allow us to understand virtual currencies and online marketplaces,
especially on the dark web, and how it has contributed to the rise of
sex and drug trafficking across this country.
With the popularity of virtual currency, it is important for us to
make sure that it is not being used for this in the fight against
trafficking. It is my hope that we all stand in support of this bill.
They can try to hide, Mr. Speaker, behind the dark web and these
faceless currencies, but under the leadership of Chairwoman Waters,
Member Vargas, and Member Wagner, we hope to find you and to stop you
from harming our residents.
Mr. McHENRY. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Riggleman), a new Member of Congress from Afton,
Virginia, and a new member of the Financial Services Committee.
Mr. RIGGLEMAN. Mr. Speaker, today I am proud to speak in support of
H.R. 502, the Fight Illicit Networks and Detect Trafficking Act, or the
FIND Trafficking Act.
First, I would like to commend Representative Vargas for sponsoring
this bipartisan legislation, and I would also like to thank my
colleague from Missouri (Mrs. Wagner), for her important work on this
bill.
As the father of three daughters, including one at James Madison
University, who is currently working on a project utilizing technology
to combat human trafficking, it is deeply concerning to me that sex
traffickers and drug smugglers have seamless access to the financial
system through the use of virtual currencies.
Virtual currencies were created to meet legitimate market demand, but
have increasingly become the preferred method of payment for illicit
goods and services facilitated by the dark web. Virtual currencies
appeal to criminals because of their versatility and ability to provide
anonymity during transactions.
According to the International Labour Organization, in 2016, 4.8
million people in this world were victims of forced sexual
exploitation. In 2014, the global profit from commercial sexual
exploitation was $99 billion. Additionally, a 2015 Treasury Department
report estimated that $64 billion is generated annually just from the
United States in drug trafficking sales.
This bill calls for the Comptroller General to conduct a study on how
virtual currencies and online marketplaces are being used to facilitate
sex and drug trafficking, and how these funds are repatriated into the
banking system.
By enacting this legislation, Congress will be taking a much-needed
step to better understand the methods and tactics used by criminals.
This information will be critical to law enforcement efforts to thwart
sex traffickers, drug dealers, terrorists, and other bad actors. Mr.
Speaker, I strongly support this bill.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Massachusetts (Ms. Pressley).
Ms. PRESSLEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Waters for her lifetime
of service and commitment to those who are ignored, left out, and left
behind.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 502, the FIND
Trafficking Act. Moreover, I rise today on behalf of the survivors of
sex trafficking in my district, Massachusetts' Seventh Congressional
District, and across our Nation.
The sex and drug trafficking industry is a $150 billion industry
across the globe and throughout our communities. This bill would bring
us one step closer to combating this pervasive and insidious industry.
I rise today to lift up the lived experience of one of its survivors:
Casey, a 13-year old who grew up in the care of the child welfare
system after surviving an abusive home. Before being referred to My
Life My Choice, a program in my district that is survivor led that
works with those impacted by trafficking, Casey had been placed in
multiple residential programs.
Just this year, Casey went missing for 1 week. Casey describes an
experience that is harrowing and, unfortunately, not unique. Craving
friendship, companionship, and safety, she built relationships online
that turned into in-person meetings.
Those meetings did not provide the safety or support Casey hoped for;
rather, they led to her exploitation. She found herself at parties
where men she trusted demanded she have sex with other men. She lived
in fear, and endured many indignities. Her safety was compromised and
her humanity marginalized.
To Casey and survivors across the Nation watching, I affirm loud and
clear: What happened to you is not your fault. We believe you and we
are here fighting for you.
We know that trafficking is enabled by many factors. Broken systems
destroy the lives of too many. I would like to thank Representative
Vargas and Representative Wagner for their bipartisan leadership to
tackle these issues, and to shed light on the ways that virtual
currencies are being manipulated by traffickers to commit horrific
human rights abuses, and contributing to our country's drug crisis.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from Massachusetts.
Ms. PRESSLEY. Mr. Speaker, the FIND Trafficking Act will require the
Federal Government to investigate the ways in which sex and drug
trafficking rings are capitalizing on the anonymity, such as bitcoin,
to finance the worldwide industry of modern-day slavery and sexual
exploitation without fear of detection. This would provide policy and
regulatory recommendations on ways to crack down on these horrendous
abuses.
It is estimated that more than 45 million men, women, and children
are affected by sex and human trafficking across the globe. Since 2011,
my home

[[Page H1227]]

State of Massachusetts has been working to tackle this growing
industry. We have been working to end this modern-day slavery and
exploitation through coalitions and innovative partnerships between
survivor-led, community-based organizations, businesses, and local
and State government agencies.

While these coalitions are making progress, they cannot do it alone.
The Federal Government has a critical role to play in providing
resources and research to guide this work. The FIND Trafficking Act
will shed much-needed light in the ways that technology-based
currencies have fueled and financed these human rights abuses. We will
not rest until every survivor receives justice, and we dismantle these
systems of oppression and exploitation that drive trafficking and
abuse.
To all survivors: We see you. We believe you, and we are fighting for
you.
Mr. McHENRY. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Pennsylvania (Ms. Dean).
Ms. DEAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the FIND Trafficking Act, H.R. 502.
Over the last several years, the work of law enforcement has gotten
significantly harder. One difference, cryptocurrencies; virtual
currencies such as bitcoin, Ethereum, and others, have changed
consumers' relationships with money in profound ways, allowing them to
conduct anonymous transactions outside the traditional banking sector.
Criminal networks have taken advantage of these new tools using
virtual currencies to carry out drug sales and sex trafficking
operations. That is why the FIND Trafficking Act is so important.
This bipartisan bill would require the Comptroller General of the
United States to study how virtual currencies enable criminal activity
and propose solutions to stop it.
Based on these findings, Congress would design legislation to
regulate virtual currencies. Our law enforcement officials are already
working hard to tackle this challenge.
In November of 2016, for example, during an investigation into an
illegal fentanyl operation, Federal law enforcement seized $2 million
in virtual currency. Nonetheless, human traffickers and drug dealers
have gravitated to virtual currencies because they provide an
unprecedented level of secrecy and anonymity.
According to DEA, online marketplaces now use virtual currencies to
sell fentanyl, a prime contribution to America's deadly opioid crisis.
We are now living and dying through the consequences.
According to the CDC, in 2017, more than 70,000 Americans died from
drug overdoses. My own State of Pennsylvania is ravaged with the third
highest rate of overdose-related deaths and untold suffering for
families in our communities.
The bottom line is we know that virtual currencies are being used to
fund sex and drug trafficking, but we don't know the true scope of the
problem, nor do we have a full set of tools to address the challenge.
That is why we need H.R. 502.
Mr. McHENRY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, in closing, I think it is important that Congress
understand. The objective of this bill is to understand the contours of
human trafficking that occur here in the United States, and to
understand the contours of how drugs are financed. It is incumbent that
we have the proper data and the public have the proper data so we can
understand how to respond.
That is what this measure is about, the plight of those human-
trafficking victims, and the plight of those who are suffering the
impairments and the devastating consequences that opioids have brought
in our society. We know those in our community.
What we have to understand is the deeper issues around the movement
of money, which is what the Financial Services Committee can do. It
doesn't fix the full problem, and we should focus on fixing the larger
issues around human trafficking and drug overdoses, and the horrible
effects of illicit drugs on our society.
But what we can do here is understand the contour so we can cut off
that siphon of money that is fueling this epidemic in our communities
all across America.
I want to thank Mr. Vargas and Mrs. Wagner, who just departed, for
their work on this important issue.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes,'' and I yield back
the balance of my time.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 502, the FIND Trafficking Act, is an important bill
in the fight against human trafficking and drug trafficking. There are
millions of victims trapped in forced sex exploitation globally, and
there were over 70,000 drug overdose deaths in the United States in
2017.
This bill will study how virtual currencies and online marketplaces
facilitate human trafficking and drug trafficking, and it will study
the participants who are abusing these mediums. The research that
results from this bill will assist Congress in finding effective
measures to address these harmful, illicit trades.
Lives can be saved because of this legislation. Once again, I thank
Congressman Vargas and Congresswoman Wagner for introducing this
bipartisan legislation.
Again, this is the second bill that we have here on the floor today
where we have bipartisan cooperation. They are great bills that both
sides can support. Again, I am very grateful for the vision of
Congressman Vargas and Congresswoman Wagner, in introducing this
legislation, and I urge support for the bill.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 502.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

____________________