[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9681 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9681
To amend title 5, United States Code, to establish a priority for
accommodation in places with policies relating to severe forms of human
trafficking, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 19, 2024
Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. Krishnamoorthi) introduced
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight
and Accountability
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 5, United States Code, to establish a priority for
accommodation in places with policies relating to severe forms of human
trafficking, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Halting Of Trafficking and
Exploitation in Lodging Act of 2024'' or the ``HOTEL Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. PRIORITY FOR ACCOMMODATION IN PLACES WITH ANTI-TRAFFICKING
POLICIES.
(a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 5712. Priority for accommodation in places with anti-trafficking
policies
``(a) Definitions.--In this section--
``(1) the term `place of accommodation' means a hotel,
motel, or other place of public accommodation that is listed by
the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency as
meeting the requirements of the fire prevention and control
guidelines described in section 29 of the Federal Fire
Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2225); and
``(2) the term `severe forms of trafficking in persons' has
the meaning given the term in section 103 of the Trafficking
Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102).
``(b) Requirement.--For the purpose of making payments under this
subchapter for lodging expenses, each agency shall ensure that, to the
greatest extent practicable, commercial-lodging room nights in the
United States for employees of that agency are booked in a preferred
place of accommodation.
``(c) Eligibility as a Preferred Place of Accommodation.--To be
considered a preferred place of accommodation for the purposes of this
section, a place of accommodation shall--
``(1) enforce the zero-tolerance policy regarding severe
forms of trafficking in persons made available by the
Administrator of General Services under subsection (d)(1), or a
similar zero-tolerance policy developed by the place of
accommodation, which shall be demonstrated by--
``(A) posting that policy in a nonpublic space
within the place of accommodation that is accessible by
all employees of the place of accommodation; or
``(B) including that policy in the employee
handbook for the place of accommodation;
``(2) have procedures in place, not later than 180 days
after the effective date of this section, for employees of the
place of accommodation to--
``(A) identify any severe form of trafficking in
persons according to protocol identified in the
employee training based on training materials developed
under subsection (d)(3); and
``(B) with respect to any severe form of
trafficking in persons identified under subparagraph
(A)--
``(i) report that activity to--
``(I) the appropriate law
enforcement authorities;
``(II) management of the place of
accommodation; or
``(III) the national human
trafficking hotline described in
section 107(b)(1)(B)(ii) of the
Trafficking Victims Protection Act of
2000 (22 U.S.C. 7105(b)(1)(B)(ii)); or
``(ii) provide information and resources to
the potential victims of that activity,
including--
``(I) contact information for the
appropriate law enforcement
authorities;
``(II) information regarding the
hotline described in clause (i)(III);
or
``(III) information regarding
appropriate local organizations;
``(3) post the informational materials made available under
subsection (d)(3) in an appropriate nonpublic space within the
place of accommodation that is accessible by all employees of
the place of accommodation;
``(4) require each employee of the place of accommodation
who is physically located at the place of accommodation and who
is likely to interact with guests (including, but not limited
to security, front desk, housekeeping, room service, and bell
staff), or who is responsible for hiring, to complete the
training developed under subsection (d)(2), or a training
developed pursuant to subsection (e), which shall--
``(A) take place not later than 90 days after the
starting date of the employee, or, in the case of an
employee hired before the effective date of this
section, not later than 90 days after the effective
date of this section; and
``(B) include training on the identification of all
possible cases of severe forms of trafficking in
persons;
``(5) ensure that the place of accommodation does not
retaliate against an employee of the place of accommodation for
reporting suspected cases of severe forms of trafficking in
persons if reported according to protocol identified in the
training for the employee; and
``(6) maintain a current record of every employee who has
completed the training program in subsection (e)--
``(A) if the training is updated in accordance with
subsection (e)(3), the place of accommodation must
update the records of the employees who retake the
training; and
``(B) records for past employees only need to be
maintained for two years past the end of employment or
longer at the discretion of the place of accommodation.
``(d) GSA Requirements.--The Administrator of General Services
shall--
``(1) make available on the website of the General Services
Administration a model zero-tolerance policy for places of
accommodation regarding severe forms of trafficking in persons,
including informational materials regarding that policy to be
posted within nonpublic spaces;
``(2) make available on the website of the General Services
Administration a list of Department of Homeland Security,
Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Justice,
Department of State, and privately produced training programs
that address the identification of severe forms of trafficking
in persons and submit reports to appropriate law enforcement
authorities or the National Human Trafficking Hotline;
``(3) in coordination with the Blue Campaign of the
Secretary of Homeland Security, make available on the website
of the General Services Administration and the Department of
Health and Human Services training and outreach materials on
preventing severe forms of trafficking in persons,
informational materials to be posted in nonpublic spaces in
places of accommodation on identifying the signs of severe
forms of trafficking in persons and reporting possible
incidences of such exploitation, and informational materials to
be posted in public or nonpublic spaces in places of
accommodation on self-identifying as a potential victim of
severe forms of trafficking in persons and how to access
services and support as such a victim, except that the
Administrator shall permit the use of substantially similar
training materials or informational materials required by State
or local law on identifying the signs of severe forms of
trafficking in persons and reporting possible incidences of
severe forms of trafficking in persons in lieu of materials
developed under this paragraph; and
``(4) maintain a list of each preferred place of
accommodation that--
``(A) meets the requirements of subsection (c); and
``(B) is--
``(i) participating in governmental lodging
programs, such as FedRooms (or any successor
system);
``(ii) included on the list maintained by
the Administrator of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency pursuant to section 28 of the
Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974
(15 U.S.C. 2224); or
``(iii) otherwise known to have received
governmental travel business during the 2-year
period preceding the effective date of this
section.
``(e) Training Programs.--
``(1) In general.--A place of accommodation may use a
training program developed or acquired by that place of
accommodation or company to satisfy the requirements of
subsection (c)(4) if that training program--
``(A) focuses on identifying and reporting
suspected cases of severe forms of trafficking in
persons; and
``(B) was developed in consultation with--
``(i) a State government;
``(ii) survivors or lived experience
experts of human trafficking;
``(iii) survivor-led anti-trafficking
organization; or
``(iv) any organization nationally
recognized for its expertise in anti-
trafficking initiatives and which actively
involves survivor-leaders in consultations.
``(2) Review.--Training program materials described in
paragraph (1) shall be--
``(A) not less frequently than once every 2 years,
reviewed by the applicable place of accommodation and,
if necessary, updated based on that review; and
``(B) delivered to employees of the place of
accommodation after any update under subparagraph (A).
``(f) Previously Trained Employees.--
``(1) Training prior to effective date.--Any employee of a
place of accommodation who has been trained to identify and
report potential cases of severe forms of trafficking in
persons before the effective date of this section shall be
considered to have satisfied the training requirement under
subsection (c)(4) with respect to any employment at that place
of accommodation or at any another place of accommodation
managed by the same entity.
``(2) Training prior to a transfer of employment.--Any
employee of a place of accommodation who has met the training
requirements under subsection (c)(4) shall be considered to
have satisfied those requirements with respect to any
employment at a place of accommodation managed by the same
entity.
``(g) Property-by-Property Implementation.--
``(1) Self-certification.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the
effective date of this section, and biennially
thereafter, each preferred place of accommodation shall
submit to the Administrator of General Services a
written self-certification that the place of
accommodation is in compliance with the requirements of
this section.
``(B) Notice; reporting.--The Administrator of
General Services shall--
``(i) provide notice to each place of
accommodation regarding any self-certification
that the place of accommodation is required to
submit under this subsection not later than the
date that is 60 days before the date on which
that such self-certification is required; and
``(ii) not later than 1 year after the
effective date of this section, and biennially
thereafter, submit to the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate
and the Committee on Oversight and Reform of
the House of Representatives a report regarding
each preferred places of accommodation that,
for the period covered by the report, submitted
and did not submit the self-certifications
required under this subsection.
``(2) Group certification.--A person or entity that manages
or franchises multiple places of accommodation may provide a
single notice with respect to self-certification under
paragraph (1) that each such place of accommodation is in
compliance with the requirements of this section. The notice
must list all the places of accommodation that are in
compliance with the requirements in subsection (c).
``(h) Statutory Construction.--No provision in this section that
applies to an employee of a place of accommodation may be construed to
apply to an individual who is an independent contractor of, or is
otherwise not directly employed by, that place of accommodation, unless
the applicable contract is for housekeeping, catering, concierge, or
security services, in which case the applicable service provider shall
ensure compliance with the requirements of this section.
``(i) Regulations Required.--The Administrator of General Services
shall issue such regulations as are necessary to carry out this
section.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for subchapter I of
chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the
end the following:
``5712. Priority for accommodation in places with anti-trafficking
policies.''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take
effect on the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act.
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