Im sorry were a few minutes late in the beginning. We did have a vote in the floor and in the middle of it a colloquy concerning our schedule. This time i recognize myself for five minutes for an Opening Statement. Good afternoon and a warm welcome to each of our witnesses who are going to join us today. We are here on what has turned out to be an oabsolute lee gorgeous day in washington d. C. But were here to talk about an ugly, sorted subject. And that is online sex trafficking. Or its the name of as the organization describeds it more bluntly, slavery. As the stings continue to proliferate, those that thought slavery was something that could never happen in 2017 america have had to confront the terrifying reality that not only is it happening, its on the rise and in large part because the internet, the technological master piece of our time has made it much easier to do. And both the house and the senate this year were facing up to the challenge with a long over due conversation driving towards effective action. With this hearing its my hope the communications and Technology Subcommittee with our particular focus will add valuable perspective about exactly what is going wrong and what is going right on the tech side as the lowest of the low harness the power of the internet to enslave and exploit our children. I am so very pleased that ms. Smith and mr. Winkal have been able to join us today to tell their stories of how tennessee has been impacted by the abhorrent crime. Like so many of the districts my colleagues represent, our home has been invaded by criminals luring in Vulnerable Women and children and forcing them into a life of sex slavery and unspeakable abuse. I know you both share my deep sadness that this is happening in our backyard and i cannot thank you enough for rescuing the victims then helping them heel while seeking justice for their abusers. Youre doing a suprlative job for the fifth year in a row tennessee received an a in the protected innocence challenge. A comprehensive annual study of existing state laws and this is compiled by shared hope international. The challenge produces state report cards that rate how effectively each state responds to the crime of domestic minor sex trafficking. After four years of straight as. Tennessee out did itself this year by leading the rankings number one in the country. What a testimony to the partnership between Tennessee Law enforcement and victim advocates that you have built and grown together over the years. Were honored that youre taking time away. The legislative debate this year has focussed on amendments to section 230 of the decency act which Law Enforcement has consistently identified as a barrier preventing effective prosecution of online entities that facilitate trafficking and adequate resource for trafficking victims. We welcome my colleague and dear friend, ann wagner who is leading this charge in the house. I look forward to hearing her testimony about her efforts to find an effective approach to a attack and defeat this problem. She has been a passionate and tireless advocate and im proud to be a co sponsor of her had bill. I also want to welcome with so many women and children waiteding and counting on us, doing nothing is not an option. At this time i yield back my time and i recognize mr. Doyle for five minutes. Thank you, madam chair for holding this important hearing and thank you to the witnesses for appearing before us today. Human trafficking in all its forms and in particular sexual trafficking of children and adlts is an abornt crime. I want to thank the witnesses from nationled center for missing and exploited children and the Tennessee Bureau of investigation. This is hard work you all do and i know it carries a heavy burden. I want to thank you for your efforts and the efforts of your organizations. Be assured this is an issue of great concern to all of us. I also want to thank representative wagner for testifying before us today. I understand this is an issue youve been working on for sometime and that save act you wrote and has become law is starting to be used to combat online sex trafficking and in reference to the bill before us, your working on an amendment in the nature of a substitute to your bill and hope it will be marked up in the judiciary committee. Im hopeful youll be able to move your amended bill out of committee and before the full house for a vote. And the permanent subcommittee on the investigations. On the report they released on back page. Com. This report is truly frightening. It alleges that backpage knowingly facilitated child sex trafficking. Im deeply concerned about emails sent by backpage moderators seeking to limit the number of ads they were reporting on a daily basis. In additioning to the report, they repeatedly altered ads by deleting word, phrases and images without reporting the ads to authorities. Again, according to this report these edits were done for the express purpose of consealing the illegal nature of these activities. Backpage went so far as to deploy soft ware that automatically deleted terms from ads such as amber alert, rape, young and fresh. This filter was apparently deployed for the purpose of consealing the true nature of the transactions that were occur ogen the site. It goes on to say that by their own internal estimates they were editing 80 to 70 of the ad on their site. Backpage would go on to reject ads containing these words but they do so with a pop up that would include explicit instructions as to what the offending word or phrase was and how they could repost their ad to get around backpages filters. They used similar techniques identifying people as under18, simply instructing them to change the posted age in order to be posted. So in my mind this report indicates a vast criminal enterprise. Im heartened by reports there are multiple investigations using insights from the Senate Report and an empanelled grand jury. My hope is just ks be done. I yield back. Gentleman yields back. Ms. Brooks, you are recognized. Youre recognized for your comments. Thank you, madam chairwoman and im very, very pleased to see our colleague and a leader in the house of representatives who has, since we came in together five years ago has been a strong, strong voice fighting for the victims and educating it American People about backpage and other avenues of sex trafficking. I just want to take a moment to commend the state of indiana. I was if volved as United States attorney from 2001 to 2007 and during that time the Bush Administration put a huge focus on exploitation and Child Exploitation. And we started an effort called i path which is about protection against Human Trafficking and it brings together law if henforce, victim services, it puts in place protocols. But ill tell you the perpetrators are always trying to stay one step ahead. They are always trying to find ways to exploit children, women and others in order to satisfy their sexual desires and its veryx very difficult work. Law if had forcement work around the world to find victims and the web that they have created and the perpetrators which coordinate around the world are something that we must continue to pursue with every avenue we possibly can. The victims and finally i just want to focus on the victims. The victims of this type of Sexual Exploitation, sexual trafficking can be found in every district in our country from urban areas to rural areas to suburban areas and i think people are often shocked when they read in our papers or read about it victims and we must make sure we are there for the victims. I just want to commend ann wagner and so many members on both sides of the aisle who have stepped up to really lead the charge and try and say that we cannot allow this type of human slavery in this day and age to continue and we must continue to fight it and i just want to thank my colleague from missouri for being a leader and i yield back. Is there any other members seeking recognition . No other members seeking recognition, at this time i want to recognize mr. Puloan who is not here for his five minutes. Any other member seeking recognition . I forgot i need to ask consent to inter into the record a letter to yourself and myself from professor Alexander Levy of the university of notre dame law school. So ordered. At this point our first witness will include ann wagner who will give opening remarks regarding her efforts on the issue. Ms. Wagner, youre recognized for five minutes. Thank you, madam chairman and Ranking Member doyle and colleagues for hosting this Committee Hearing today. And for allowing me to give some opening remarks. I appreciate your commitment to addressing online trafficking and especially appreciate so many members of this subcommittee have publicly co sponsored hr 65, stopping the victimization of america was children and adults online is my top priority. In congress. And i know i have an ally in chairman blackburn. A i also appreciate them for being original co sponsors of my bill. My initial piece of legislation was the save act which became law in 2018. It was a first step in addressing federal level prosecutions of websites. Unfortunate lee it had had not yet been used. Presumably because the standard in the legislation knowingly is too high. Moreover it save act was federally focussed and it did not enable states and local prosecutors to protect their communities. I have learned a lot since then and this is why over a year 1 2 ago i began working on hr 181565 that allows victims to fight online sex trafficking act. The bill is written for victims. Not only because it would allow them to pursue Civil Justice but because it would empower local prosecutors to take down websites before they ever reach the size or the scope of backpage. Com. The house understands that enabling vigorous criminal enforcement is mandatory in any legislation we pass. The isis why over 170 of my call eelgs co sponsored when i explained how websites can perpetuate modern day slavery with immunity. Why are they able to sell our children . Because judges have ruled section 230 that rules websites that exploit the most vulnerable members of our society from being held accountable. Congresss response to these rulings must be patently clear. Seksz 2 thur30 was never intend allow businesses to commit crimes online that they could never commit off line. When Congress Passed a Communications Decency act in 1996 it explicitly acted to prevent the internet from becoming a red light district and did not believe rape was a prerequisite of a free and open interint. Congress cannot do is pass a bill that amends section 230 but is so narrow it could only be used to prosecute backpage. Com. Let me be plain. I support the it recent action on my legislative proposal. I appreciate it complicated strategic environment others are operating in and i believe it is a step in the right direction. But the senate bill is not the full solution. Backpage. Com is the largest of the websites that facilitate trafficking but it is already under federal investigation and it is just a small, small piece, small piece of this growing criminal echo system. Hundred hads and let me underscore hundreds of advertising sites. For if hadstance arrow s serves at the high end market. They advertise close to the age of consent and massage troll is sadly popular in my district. A wealth of evidence against backpage. Com has been discovered over the past year and those still incredibly difficult to prove they knowingly assisted in sex trafficking violations, it is not possible to gather this level of evidence or the hundreds of other websites that are profiting from the sex trade. I have spoken with prosecutors across the country who have asked the house to pass a practical solution that would allow them to take predatory websites off the internet and i repeatedly told that any legislation that depends exclusively on the knowingly mens rea standard is merely a washington d. C. Feel good exercise. Congress might pat itself on the back but will have accomplished little to prevent the sale of victims online. Fosta is centered on the reckless disregard standard they need to open cases on bad actor websites and we must find a way to maintain a useful standard or at the very least not raise a high bar they must already meet. If we are serious about helping victims, we must create laws that allow for a robust state and local criminal enforcement. Criminal enforcement means businesses will stay out of the legal sex trade. Fewer people will ever become victims, demand will be reduces and yes, civil suits will be easier to bring. Criminals who auction our children will be put behind bars. I believe in closing we can markup a bipartisan house bill that will provide meaningful tools to prevent future victimization and i look forward to working with you to pass a forward facing solution that will disrupt it online trafficking industry. I thank you, madam chairwoman, i thank you all in the had committee to for allowing me to give these opening remarks. We thank you so much for your remarks and your well wishes that we will move forward. At this time we will briefly recess long enough to put the new nameplates up and well welcome our panel to the table. At this time we welcome our second panel witnesses. The senior vp and general counsel for it National Center for missing and exploited children. Ms. Smith, ceo of slavery, tennessee. And assistant of Tennessee Bureau of investigation and mr. Erick goldman, a University Professor at Santa Clara School of law. We appreciate youre here today. We are going to begin our testimony with you. Each of you will have five minutes. I ask you move the microphone to you. Touch the button in the center so you activate it and at the end of your five minutes we will begin it questioning portion of this hearing. Youre recognized for five minutes. Thank you. Chairman blackburn, and members of the committee, i am honored to be here today on behalf of the National Center for missing and exploited children and to join this dus cushion to insure that americas most vulnerable victims, children traffics online for rape and sexual abuse have opportunities for justice against their traffickers. Including those who participate in trafficking them online. Id like to thank congresswoman wagner for her long standing dedication and tireless work to create meaningful change for these survivors. As part of our work as the congressionally designated Resource Center on missing and exploited children, receives approximately 9,800 reports every year. Over the past five years, 88 of these reports have involved a child being trafficked online. More than 74 of these reports from the public relate to an ad on backpage. Weve learned an enormous amount about the ruthlessness about it sale of Children Online and weve also seen courts struggle for facilitating sex trafficking. Today were at a cross roads on how best to proceed with legislation that combats this heinous crime. Courts have been unable to find their way around the current application of the cda, a statute over 21 years old and has created broad immunity. These courts have called on congress to clarify that all facilitators of online sex trafficking, including websites are not legally protected. The house of representatives and the senate have worked on parallel tracks to develop bills that respond to the recent Court Decisions and reconcile the cda with protections granted to victims under the federal trafficking statute. We believe these bills address the specific legal barriers faesed by child sex trafficking victims. First, insuring that state attorneys general have the authority to protect children in their own states and bring civil action against online entities that participate in sex trafficking. Second, clarifying that sex trafficking victims can pursue civil remedies against everyone who participates in their trafficking, including websites. And third, defining participation in a trafficking venture under federal law as assisting, supporting or facilitating sex trafficking. These broad legislative solutions specifically respond to what courts have called on congress to do, provide children with access to justice. It has assisted 10s of thousands of children victimized by online sex trafficking. Behind the current debate about the particular details and standards are horrific experiences suffered by these children. Who are defenseless against predators selling them for rape and sexual abuse online. It has worked closely with many sex trafficking victims whose cases have been dismissed due that current broad interpretation of the cdas immunity. We have witnessed the anguish and heard their hopelessness when courts dismiss their cases that facilitated their trafficking. Victims who have been denied justice include a 14yearold girl who is trafficked online for two years. And advertised in sexually explicit poses. Two 15yearold girls, one who was raped over 1,000 times while trafficked online for just over a year and a second girl who was trafficked online for two years and sold to five from five to 15 customers a day. Cases like this remind us of it on going suffering of victims and the urgency to move forward with legislation that addresses past cases and has broad support for all stake holders including the tech sector. They believe outlined more fully in my written testimony will provide powerful tools to insure the rights of child victims while protecting current law that encourage as robust internet. We couldnt agree with you more when you said standing by idly is simply not an option. It is time that we hold Companies Accountable for their actions with they cross the line. Weve been encouraged by the legislative progress, including the support of Internet Association and facebook. And a similar path forward can be accomplished here in the house. We stand ready to assist the committee so a bill can move expeditionsly for enactment into law. Gentle lady yields back. Ms. Smith, youre recognized for five minutes. Chairman blackburn, rajing member doyle, thank you for holding a hearing on this important topic. Its an honor to offer te