Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2022 This act reauthorizes, updates, and expands federal efforts to address domestic trafficking, including to make permanent the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking; reauthorize various grants, activities, and programs that support victims of domestic trafficking; and expand research and reporting related to trafficking. TITLE I--COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS IN THE UNITED STATES Subtitle A--Programs To Support Young Victims Who Are Vulnerable To Human Trafficking (Sec. 101) This section authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), in collaboration with the Department of Justice (DOJ), to award competitive grants to support collaboration between state child-welfare and juvenile-justice agencies to address the needs of dual-status youth and their families. The term dual-status youth means children who come into contact with both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. (Sec. 102) This section makes permanent the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking. (Sec. 103) This section establishes a pilot program to provide funding for community-based organizations in underserved communities to support youth at risk of being trafficked. Subtitle B--Governmental Efforts To Prevent Human Trafficking (Sec. 121) This section requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress on federal contract supply chain oversight related to the prevention of trafficking in persons. (Sec. 122) This section expresses the sense of Congress that federal agencies should incorporate a module on human trafficking into staff training requirements; the training should teach employees how to prevent, identify, and report trafficking in persons; and agencies should inform all candidates for employment about the anti-trafficking provisions in the code of conduct of the agency. Additionally, this section requires officers and employees of executive branch agencies to be subject to minimum standards with respect to human trafficking, including a prohibition on engaging in human trafficking while employed by the federal government. (Sec. 123) This section requires the GAO to (1) study the accessibility of mental health services and substance use disorder treatment and recovery for survivors of human trafficking in the United States of various ages, and (2) report to Congress on the findings of the study and recommendations for increased accessibility and affordability for survivors of trafficking. (Sec. 124) This section directs the National Science Foundation to support merit-reviewed and competitively awarded research on the impact of online social media platforms on the maintenance or expansion of human trafficking. Subtitle C--Monitoring Child, Forced, and Slave Labor (Sec. 131) This section requires federal agencies and departments that receive appropriations to award anti-trafficking grants to report on obligations and expenditures of federal funds for the purpose of combating human trafficking and forced labor. (Sec. 132) This section expresses the sense of Congress that companies headquartered or doing business in the United States that are not small business concerns (e.g., companies with 500 or more employees) should adopt a written policy that prohibits trafficking in persons. (Sec. 133) This section revises criteria for considering a child to be a victim of child abuse and neglect and of sexual abuse. Specifically, it provides that a child shall be considered a victim of child abuse and neglect and of sexual abuse if the child is identified as being a victim of human trafficking. Currently, a child is considered a victim of child abuse and neglect and of sexual abuse if the child is identified as being a victim of sex trafficking or a victim of severe forms of trafficking in persons. (Sec. 134) This section establishes the sense of Congress that (1) DOJ has failed to meet its reporting requirements under Title IV of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017, and (2) progress on critical data collection about human trafficking and crime reporting is in jeopardy as a result of the failure and must be addressed immediately. (Sec. 135) This section expresses the sense of Congress that (1) a person is qualified as a victim of child sex trafficking if the person is a victim, as a child, of human trafficking; and (2) all states and territories should evaluate whether to eliminate the requirement for third-party control to properly qualify a child as a victim of sex trafficking. (Sec. 136) This section expresses the sense of Congress that each state child welfare agency should report information on missing or abducted foster children and youth to the National Center on Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and to law enforcement for inclusion in the National Crime Information Center database. (Sec. 137) This section modifies the requirements for state plans for foster care and adoption assistance. The section specifies that the plans must require state child welfare agencies that report information on missing or abducted foster children and youth to the NCMEC and to law enforcement authorities to maintain regular communication and share information with the NCMEC and law enforcement agencies to provide a safe recovery of a missing or abducted child or youth. This includes sharing, where reasonably possible, a photo of the missing or abducted child or youth, a description of the child's physical features, and other health or risk factors (e.g., pregnancy status or vulnerability to being sex trafficked). TITLE II--AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS This title reauthorizes activities and programs at various federal departments and agencies that support victims of trafficking in the United States. (Sec. 201) This section reauthorizes through FY2028 HHS and DOJ grants and programs to expand benefits and services to citizens and lawful permanent residents who are victims of severe forms of trafficking; Department of Labor activities to expand benefits and programs for victims of severe forms of trafficking; and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) authority to investigate severe forms of trafficking in persons, including to establish a labor trafficking investigations team within DHS. (Sec. 202) This section authorizes amounts through FY2028 for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to strengthen enforcement of the prohibition on importing any product that was mined, produced, or manufactured by forced labor.
This act authorizes the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation to lease their land held in trust for a term of up to 99 years. The tribe is located in western Washington State.
Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail Designation Act This act designates the trail extending approximately 3,292 miles and following the route operated by the Butterfield Overland Mail Company, known as the Ox-Bow Route, to transport mail and passengers between the eastern end points of St. Louis, Missouri, and Memphis, Tennessee, and extending westward through the states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, to the western end point of San Francisco, California, as the Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail. The United States shall not acquire for the trail any land or interest in land outside of the exterior boundary of any federally administered area without the consent of the owner of such land or interest in land. The Department of the Interior may not use eminent domain or condemnation in carrying out this act.
Low Power Protection Act This act provides for a one-year period during which eligible low-power television stations may apply to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for Class A licenses. To be eligible, a station must serve a media market with a limited number of television households, broadcast a minimum number of hours, and meet other requirements. A low-power station with a Class A license obtains certain broadcast rights, including primary status with respect to its allocation of the electromagnetic spectrum. (Typically, low-power stations have secondary status and may be displaced from their spectrum in the event the FCC reallocates it to a primary user.)
Colorado River Indian Tribes Water Resiliency Act of 2022 This act authorizes the Colorado River Indian tribes (CRIT) to enter into agreements for the transfer or storage of a portion of its water allocation to be used in other locations in Arizona. The CRIT include four Indian tribes—the Mohave, Chemehuevi, Hopi, and Navajo. The reservation is located along the Colorado River in both Arizona and California. (Sec. 4) The CRIT is authorized to enter into an agreement to lease or exchange a portion of the CRIT's consumptive use of water for use off the reservation if the receiving facility is located in the Lower Basin of the Colorado River in Arizona and is not located in Navajo, Apache, or Cochise counties in Arizona. The term of a lease under this section must not exceed 100 years. (Sec. 5) The CRIT is authorized to enter into a storage agreement, including with the Arizona Water Banking Authority, for the storage of a portion of the consumptive use, or the water received under an exchange pursuant to an exchange agreement under this act, at one or more underground storage facilities or groundwater savings facilities off the reservation if the facility is located in the Lower Basin of the Colorado River in Arizona and is not located in Navajo, Apache, or Cochise counties in Arizona. (Sec. 6) The CRIT is authorized to enter into an agreement for water conservation or other methods for voluntarily leaving a portion of the CRIT reduced consumptive use in Lake Mead, which is located in Arizona and Nevada. If the conserved water is delivered, the delivery must be located in the Lower Basin of the Colorado River in Arizona and is not located in Navajo, Apache, or Cochise counties in Arizona. The term of an agreement under this section must not exceed 100 years. (Sec. 7) This section grants authority to the Department of the Interior to approve or disapprove of an agreement under this act. Interior is also authorized to enter into agreements with CRIT under this act, provided Interior pays fair market value for the reduced consumptive use. Among other requirements, Interior must ensure that water agreements under this act do not permanently alienate any portion of the CRIT water allocation. (Sec. 8) Interior, when approving an agreement under this act, must ensure that such agreement complies with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and other federal environmental laws. (Sec. 9) The CRIT must enter into an agreement with the state of Arizona prior to entering into an agreement under this act. The agreement with Arizona must outline all notice, information sharing, and collaboration requirements. (Sec. 10) Interior must enter into an agreement with the state of Arizona and the CRIT describing the procedural, technical, and accounting methodologies for an agreement under this act. (Sec. 11) This section reserves the CRIT's allocated water rights, including by ensuring that no agreement reduces or limits the right of the CRIT to use the remaining portion of their allocation. (Sec. 12) This section prohibits an agreement under this act from interfering with an allottee's water rights. (Sec. 13) This section establishes that the CRIT is entitled to all consideration from an agreement under this act. (Sec. 14) The United States has limited liability against claims under this act, except for those relating to the above environmental requirements.
This act revises the White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Act of 2010, including by extending certain deadlines and establishing reporting requirements. (The quantification act approved the White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Agreement, settling the tribe's water rights in Arizona. It authorized the design and construction of a rural water system to address the water infrastructure needs on the tribe's reservation.) Specifically, the act extends the enforceability deadline, from 2023 to 2027, for the Department of the Interior to publish a statement of findings required by the quantification act. In particular, the act repeals the settlement agreement on December 31, 2027, if Interior does not publish by December 30, 2027, a statement of findings that specified conditions have been fulfilled (including that funds necessary to construct the rural water system have been deposited into a specified subaccount). The act makes changes to cost indexing for the funds and subaccounts established under the quantification act, including by allowing adjustments for construction costs. The act also requires annual reports to Congress describing all expenditures and including additional information, such as progress and cost accounting on the planning, design, and construction of the Miner Flat Dam and any additional water supply facilities resulting from expenditures. Finally, the act establishes requirements for determining whether the rural water system is substantially complete. In particular, the rural water system shall be determined to be substantially complete if (1) the infrastructure is capable of storing, diverting, treating, transmitting, and distributing a supply of water as set forth in the final project design; or (2) Interior has expended all available funding and cannot complete construction due solely to the lack of additional authorized funding.
Dr. Joanne Smith Memorial Rehabilitation Innovation Centers Act of 2022 This act directs the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to publish and biennially update a list of all rehabilitation innovation centers. The act defines rehabilitation innovation centers as rehabilitation facilities that (1) hold specified federal research and training designations for traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury research, and (2) serve at least a certain number of Medicare patients. The CMS may waive such criteria as it deems appropriate.
Equal Pay for Team USA Act of 2022 This bill requires that all athletes representing the United States in international amateur athletic competitions receive equal compensation and benefits for their work, regardless of gender. Specifically, the bill requires, for a sport for which the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committees (the corporation) conduct separate programs for female and male athletes who represent the United States in international amateur athletic events, from funds directly provided by the corporation to the athlete (with exceptions), that there be equivalent and nondiscriminatory compensation, wages, benefits, medical care, travel arrangements, and payment or reimbursement for expenses. It shall be permissible to (1) consider merit, performance, seniority, or quantity of play in determining contract or other terms of participation; and (2) provide more beneficial terms of participation to athletes to address disparities in outside income, or the need to foster underdeveloped programs or address documented and justifiable personal need on the part of specific athletes or teams. The corporation must take all reasonable steps to advocate to international sports federations and other event organizers to equalize prizes, compensation, funding, and other support provided to athletes by such federations and organizers. The corporation must report to Congress at least annually on compliance. Each report must include detailed information on the median, minimum, and maximum stipends and bonuses provided to athletes, disaggregated by gender, race, and status of participation on a professional sports team. The bill requires full compliance within one year of this bill's enactment.
National Heritage Area Act This act establishes a National Heritage Area System. The Department of the Interior may provide technical and financial assistance to local coordinating entities to support the establishment, development, and continuity of such areas. The National Heritage Area System shall be composed of each National Heritage Area, National Heritage Corridor, National Heritage Canalway, Cultural Heritage Corridor, National Heritage Route, and National Heritage Partnership designated by Congress before or on enactment of this act; and each National Heritage Area designated by Congress after enactment of this act. A National Heritage Area shall not be considered to be a unit of the National Park System nor subject to the authorities applicable to such units. Interior may carry out or review a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of each proposed heritage area for designation as a National Heritage Area. Interior must review and certify whether the proposed area meets specified requirements, including that it has natural, historic, and cultural resources that represent distinctive aspects of the heritage of the United States. An area shall be designated as a National Heritage Area only by an act of Congress. Interior shall conduct studies to assess the suitability and feasibility of designating specified areas in Hawaii as the Kaena Point National Heritage Area and in Virginia and North Carolina as the Great Dismal Swamp National Heritage Area. The act also (1) establishes or extends specified National Heritage Areas, (2) redesignates the America's Agricultural Heritage Partnership in Iowa as the Silos & Smokestacks National Heritage Area, and (3) extends the deadline for the management plans for certain heritage areas.
Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act of 2022 This act requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to ensure that rates and charges for payphone services or other calling devices, including advanced (e.g., audio or video) communications services in correctional institutions, are just and reasonable. When promulgating regulations or otherwise implementing this act, the FCC (1) may use industry-wide average costs related to providing telephone and advanced communications services, and (2) must consider costs for safety and security measures related to providing communications services in correctional facilities.
Durbin Feeling Native American Languages Act of 2022 This act directs the President to review whether federal agencies are in compliance with requirements to promote the use of Native American languages and make recommendations to improve interagency coordination to support the use of these languages. It also requires the Administration for Native Americans to survey the use of Native American languages in the United States.
Protecting American Intellectual Property Act of 2022 This bill imposes sanctions on certain foreign individuals and entities involved in the theft of trade secrets belonging to a U.S. individual or entity. The President shall periodically report a list of foreign individuals and entities that have knowingly engaged in, benefited from, or assisted in the significant theft of U.S. trade secrets that materially contributed to a significant threat to U.S. national security, foreign policy, or economic health. The report shall also list foreign individuals who are chief executive officers or board members of any foreign entity engaging in such theft. The President shall impose (1) property- and visa-blocking sanctions on individuals named in the report; and (2) property- or export-blocking sanctions, including denial of certain financial assistance, on entities named in the report.
