PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Congressional Research Service
Version 36 · Passed House amended · May 23, 2017
Put Trafficking Victims First Act of 2017
(Sec. 2) This bill directs the Office for Victims of Crime within the Department of Justice (DOJ) to publish a report on state safe harbor laws, including: (1) the impact of state safe harbor laws on victims of trafficking, and (2) best practices and recommendations on the development and implementation of effective state safe harbor laws.
(Sec. 3) The bill amends the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000 to modify requirements with respect to the allocation of trafficking victim services grant funds for training and technical assistance. Specifically, it requires training and technical assistance to be provided in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services. Additionally, it broadens the areas of training and technical assistance to include, among others, investigating, prosecuting, and preventing human trafficking through a trauma-informed and victim-centered approach.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
(Sec. 4) The National Institute of Justice must:
establish a working group to identify and recommend best practices for collecting data on human trafficking;
report on efforts to develop methodologies to determine the prevalence of human trafficking in the United States; and
coordinate with federal, state, local, and tribal governments, and private organizations, to survey survivors to estimate the prevalence of human trafficking in the United States.
(Sec. 5) DOJ must report on efforts to increase mandatory restitution orders and asset forfeiture to provide restitution to victims of trafficking.
(Sec. 6) The bill encourages states to implement certain protections for victims of trafficking.
People & committees
Rep. Wagner, Ann [R-MO-2] · R–MO
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
The title of the measure was amended. Agreed to without objection.
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H4484-4486)
Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.(text: CR H4484-4486)
DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 2473.
Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H4484-4489)
Mr. Goodlatte moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Aug 10, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze H.R.2473 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.2473 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.2473 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine H.R.2473 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.