Members of Congress Lead “Dear Colleague” Effort in Support of FY13 Federal Funding for Anti-Trafficking Programs

In a bipartisan effort, members of Congress from both the House and Senate signed onto a “Dear Colleague” letter urging the Chairs and Ranking Members of each chamber’s Appropriations Committee to provide sufficient funding in FY13 for programs that work to combat the growing problem of human trafficking and slavery.

The House “Dear Colleague” letter, spearheaded by Rep. Maloney (D-NY), was signed onto by 18 representatives, including Rep. Marino (R-PA) and Rep. Bass (D-CA); the Senate “Dear Colleague” letter, spearheaded by Sen. Wyden (D-OR ), was signed onto by 19 senators, including Senators Burr (R-NC), Brown (R-MA), and Cornyn (R-TX).

The federal appropriations process is running on an expedited time frame this year, and markups began as early as this month. The Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking (ATEST), in partnership with over 100 anti-trafficking organizations, also submitted five letters addressed to Congressional leadership in support of federal funding for anti-trafficking programs targeted to the following House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees:

Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS)

Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS)

State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPS)

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

Financial Services and General Government (FSGG)