Itself issues. Texas a quand m, university of texas at austin, the university of houston, other institutions, these arell public universities. And these individuals, these students, pay tuition to go to these public universities. And in response, theyre issued identification vehicles. Identification cards. But the state of texas has seen fit to say, thats not valid in order to vote. And i think that one example, and weve heard several others, basically exposes the fact that the movement to impose voter identification requirements is a fraud itself. Its a sham. The whole argument behind it is that were trying to protect the integrity of the Voting System. Heres the problem. Youre protecting the integrity of the Voting System by imposing a solution in search of a problem. Because none of these individuals in any of these states has been able to produce a scintilla of evidence of fraud. In fact, there are studies that have shown that there have been over a billion instances of americans exercisings exercising the right to vote without any evidence of misrepresentation. Over a billion times. And the number of instances of questionable voting less than 50. And yet, in state after state, we see voter identification laws being imposed on the people. Its not designed to protect the integrity of anything. Designed to protect certain individuals and maintain their power in the face of troubling demographic changes that are occurring in america. Lets call it like it is. In the few moments remain, let me yield let me ask the chairman how much time do we have remaining in the special order . The speaker pro tempore the gentleman has four minutes remaining. Mr. Jeffries ok, let me now yield a few moments to someone who has been a tremendous champion from the great state of texas in representing her people and in houston and phenomenal member of the judiciary committee, representative Sheila Jackson lee. Ms. Jackson lee let me thank the distinguished gentleman from new york, which shows that the issues of Voter Empowerment are nationwide and the gentlelady from ohio, who has been steadfast on important issues that deal with the empowerment of all americans. I note that my colleague from texas made his presentation, congressman veasey who everyone knows was the plaintiff in texas for the voter i. D. Law. I wanted to come this evening ry briefly to one, one sit a to, one, submit a full statement into the record and, two, let me read the headline or topic again, democracy in crisis, reckless republican assault on the right to vote in america. It did not have to be for it is ode that we have dealt with Voter Empowerment in a bipartisan way. The very difficult journey that Lyndon Baines johnson took in 1965 after the foot sole scrers and dr. Martin luther king and others made their momentous march and statement, including a letter from a birmingham jail that captured the history or the sentiment and movement of the Civil Rights Movement in the very base exwords, injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere, with that power behind him he was able to frame the Voting Rights act in a bipartisan manner with republicans from the north and what we used to call dixiecrats from the south. It can be done. Then in 2006 and 2007, i was privileged to have another texan, george w. Bush, a member of the house judiciary committee, after 15,000 pages of testimony with the republican chairman that we went and passed 65 ter reauthorization, 19 Voting Rights act. Let me close with these points about the pointedness, mr. Jeffries, of what voting power actually means. What it means is that we would not have the North Carolina set of vetting laws, you will that cut sunday voting or early voting, had one of the most horrific voter i. D. Laws, we would not have the texas voter i. D. Law that disenfranchised thousands upon thousands of his pan exs because of no d. P. S. Officers, department of Public Safety officers, in their location. Finally, we would not have an attempt to cut billions of dollars from food stamps and an attempt to cut trillions of dollars from education for our children, the status that were in right now trying to seek full funding of the president s mverage funding of 1. 9 billion for the zika virus. This is what voting power means. Finally, finally, after the Supreme Court instructed the congress or told the congress that we needed to have a new bill, we would not have the predicament were in now, i yield back to the gentleman, we need voting power. Mr. Jeffries as Lyndon Baines johnson said from this very chamber shortly before the Voting Rights act was passed into law, we shall overcome. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. Under the speakers announced policy of january 6, 2015, the gentleman from texas, mr. Poe is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. The gentleman is recognized until 10 00 p. M. Mr. Poe i thank the speaker, ask unanimous consent that all members be allowed five days to file remarks, revise and extend those remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Poe mr. Speaker, this sunday, may 29, marks the oneyear anniversary for the justice for victims of trafficking act being signed as we refer fvta to it. This is a vital piece of legislation that the house and senate passed, sign by the president a year ago, that takes this scourge of human slavery thats taking place internationally but also here in the United States and Congress Weighs in on this to deal with this issue. I think in a very good way. And its impressive to me as a member of the house how many members of congress on both sides were involved in drafting legislation over a year ago that came to the house and passed. In the house itself, there were 11 pieces of legislation dealing with trafficking, sex trafficking, and all of those bills came up to the house floor the same week, all of them passed with overwhelming numbers, went down the hallway to the u. S. Senate, the senate combined those bills into one bill, passed that legislation, it came back to the house, we passed that, signed by the president. And i want to thank all those members of congress, republicans and democrats, who worked on this. Just by way of background, i got involved in this issue several ways. One way was when i was in Eastern Europe several years ago and found out about Human Trafficking, sex trafficking and labor trafficking that was taking place in Eastern Europe and how young women were lured into thinking they were ing to get a better job or have a job in africa and next thing they knew they were in sex slavery in northern africa. Most of those women just disappeared over the years. Then back here in the United States, we have the problem of the crime and the scourge of trafficking and it happens in two areas. Theres International Sex trafficing into the United States, about 20 of the trafficking here in america is international. Primarily coming from the southern border. Yosee the drug traffickers, drug dealers that come across the southern border, texas, they bring anybody into the United States. They do anything for money. And they will bring young girls, young women, traffic them into the United States, turn them over to criminal gangs like the ms13 gang and then theyre trafficked throughout the United States. Thats about 20 of the trafficking. Trafficked r 80 is by domestic, where young girl, young women are trafficked throughout the United States, the same ime. Sex slavery,ex trafficking. I had the opportunity to meet a lot of these Trafficking Victims in my work as chairman, cochairman with jim costa, of the crim vims caucus. Ill tell you about three of those. Those three women helped get the mind straight of members of congress on this issue thats aking place. Teeher nickname is, was in foster care. She spent 18 yearof her life in foster care. In foster care she was abused, treated like an animal, hardly fed by some of the individuals that were in the foster care system. All she wanted was a family, someone to love and care for her she met an older boy and that individual me her feel special, loved, promised he loved her, would take kear of her. As soon as she left with him, she became a sex slave. Her innocence was crushed, she was sold around the country in masse parlor, strip clubs, hotels, on the internet. She was treated like propey for seven years. I mentioned she wain foster care. We now understand that about 2 3 of Trafficking Victims, sex Trafficking Victims in the United States, sw in their life were in foster care. Thats an issue we have to deal with. Congress has to deal with that. But finally, tee was rescued and new tells her story wherever she can aeven Time Magazine featur her and her life and her story and her recovery. Brook axtell i met in texas. Her mother was extremely ill when she was about 7 years of age. The mother turnedrook over t nanny but the nanny did not protect her. In fact, the nanny did just the opposite. The nanny sexually abused brooke d then trafficked her. And its common with Trafficking Victims, broo was also a victi of child pornography. After mom gets out of e hospital, brooke was slow to tell mom what happened but she finally did and woing with her mother she w able to be rescued and get out of this scourge of sex trafficking. Now she works with allies against slavery in texas. Third person i want to mention, very briefly, is Sheryl Briggs who grew up in an abusive home. She was sexually abused by her father, things were so bad in the home th mama left when shel was very young to escape the abuse. But at the age of 2, sheryl didnt know what else to do except get away from her father so she ran away. She began hitchhikg with Truck Drivers, anybody who would take her. Let led her to get involved with a Motorcycle Group and she started a career, unfortunately, in sex trafficking hell,. This individual took or the a biker club filled with men who sexually ais ald her, raped her. She became traffickinvictim. She was forced to do all kinds of just aul, horrible things. She wa trapped in this ourge of Human Trafficking and didnt knowow to get help. She w finally ablto get help when a patron of the strip cub figured out on his own that she was too young and helped her get rescued and now sheryl works with helping ose who are in this trafficking sex trafficking in the uted states. Those are just three stories, mr. Speaker. So what we did, let me tell you about one bill. I want oer members of congress who are here at this late hour to make comments as well. Carolyn maloney and i worked on justice for victims of trafficng act. Now you know carolyn maroney. She is a new york maloney. Shes new york liberal democrat that talks a little funny. And she teamed up with me a texas conservative that talks a little funny, according to her. And the two o us got together and started working on this with lots of members of congress and the justice for victims of trafficking act, thanks to the hard work of mrs. Maloney and others, espially th women in the u. S. Hse of representatives, passed the house, it does three things. Its after the trafficker, the slave master. And makes sure that when prosecors, mr. Speaker, as you know about prosecutors, when ey get prosecute those cases, that pson goes ay to the penitentiary, the do right hotel, for as longs the judge can sentence him. Thent goes thent looks at the Trafficking Victim. For Years Society looked at thisvictim as a criminal. A child prostitute. Children cannot be prostitutes. Its impossie. Legally impossible. So rather thatreat them like criminals and put them in the criminal Justice System, it rescues those victims and treats them like victims of crime rather than criminals. A major change in societys thought process about these children and young women. Alsit goes after the the consumer. The buyer. In the middle. Too long these buyers, buyers of Trafficking Victims to pay money to do these awful things to children, have kind of skated under the criminal Justice System. Not anymore. Those days are over. The days of boys being boys are over. And these buyers can be prosecuted to the same extent of the law as the trafficker. So the bill does three things. Goes after the trafficker, goes after the demand, the money, rescues the victims. How do we pay for this . Kind of a novel approach. Federal judges now can impose fines and fees on the trafficker and the buyer, because a lot of them have a lot of money, and that money goes into a fund and that fund is used and given as grants for different organizations, nonprofits, throughout the country, and states, to help Trafficking Victims and also to educate police and educate the public. So a good piece of legislation. And that was just one of several pieces of legislation that came to the house floor. I do want to recognize, as i told you this was bipartisan, ms. Joyce beatty is here from ohio, she filed legislation called improving the response for victims of child sex trafficking, all of that legislation was included in the senate bill and came back to the house and then passed. And what it does is decriminalize child sex and make it easier for people to report potential incidences of crimes against children. So id like to yield to her five minutes, on this issue, a great advocate on behalf of crime victims and Trafficking Victims. I yield to the gentlelady. Mrs. Beatty thank you so much, judge poe. To my colleague, mr. Speaker, i would like to thank judge poe, chairman of the victims rights caucus, and representative of texas second Congressional District, for organizing this evenings important special order hour, and for all of his hard work on behalf of the victims of Human Trafficking. Im also very pleased to have the opportunity to partner with my good friend, congresswoman wagner, of missouri, and my classmate. And a friend who we share the same priority of eradicating Human Trafficking. Kind of odd, as judge poe talked about his relationship lynn maloney, two people who seem carolyn maloney, two people who seem on paper very different. One might say the same about mrs. Wagner and i. But, mr. Speaker, there is that Common Thread that puts us together to not only advocate and fight for something that we need to fight for, but weve been able to make a difference. And that is why i come to the house floor this evening to recognize and celebrate a very important anniversary. The oneyear anniversary of bipartisan, comprehensive legislation, justice for victims trafficking act, that was signed into law. The justice for victims of trafficking act, or jvta, was a updates ill that americas effort to combat the scourge of Human Trafficking. And provided essential resources to survivors and Law Enforcement officials. I am so proud to have had my bill be included in this legislation. And to have been able to take part in its drafting, passage and enactment. Mr. Speaker, in the year since jvtas enactment, we have witnessed important achievements. For example, the jvta has reinvigorated americas commitment to protecting our children from cruel ex employeetation. Mr. Speaker, cruel exploitation. Mr. Speaker, these children still need our protection. Human trafficking, as weve heard, is an estimated multibilliondollar a Year International enterprise that forces the most atrisk among us, both here at home and abroad, into modern day slavery. It is one of the Fastest Growing crimes in the world. According to the United States partment of state department, human traffic something amongst the worlds top three criminal enterprises. It is forced prostitution, domestic slavery and forced labor. Which is why enactment and now the implementation of the jvta is so important. We must continue to work to eradicate Human Trafficking and support the victims. In the year since the jvtas enactment, we have seen educators, Law Enforcement officials, service providers, working together, democrats and republicans, mr. Speaker, raising awareness in our communities that Human Trafficking is not merely an international phenomena. It unfortunately happens all too often in our backyards. Just as we have heard judge poe and talk about brook, and the stories could go on and on. In my home state of ohio, for example, each year an estimated 1,000 children become victims of Human Trafficking. And over 3,000 more are at risk. Ohio is the fifth leading state for Human Trafficking because of its proximity to waterways that lead to an International Border and i75 interstate that allows anyone to exit the state within two hours to almost anywhere. Lastly, i am very thankful for having amazing