Kings County Times

Congressman David Valadao (CA-22) and Senator James Lankford (R-OK) have introduced a new bill aimed at preventing human trafficking in government contracts. The Ensuring Accountability and Dignity in Government Contracting Act of 2025 is a bipartisan effort also supported by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH), as well as Representatives Mike Turner (OH-10), Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08), and Seth Magaziner (RI-02).

This legislation addresses gaps in federal regulations that allow human trafficking to occur within government contracting, while enhancing oversight, accountability, and reporting requirements for agencies.

"The United States has a zero-tolerance policy for human trafficking, yet recent reports make it clear that federal agencies are failing to take meaningful action to prevent trafficking in government contracts," said Congressman Valadao. He emphasized the importance of anti-trafficking compliance plans and consequences for violations to ensure American taxpayers are not complicit in such activities.

Senator Lankford echoed these sentiments, stating, "It is unthinkable that taxpayer dollars would fund human and labor trafficking." He noted that the bill introduces proactive measures to prevent taxpayer funds from being spent on contracts without adequate safeguards against trafficking.

Senator Klobuchar highlighted the need for continuous efforts against human trafficking: "This bipartisan legislation is another step in the fight to end trafficking, by ensuring federal contractors have a plan to prevent human trafficking."

Congressman Turner added, "The U.S. government must ensure that taxpayer dollars are never tied to human trafficking," stressing the bill's role in strengthening enforcement and closing oversight gaps.

Congressman Krishnamoorthi expressed his support: "By requiring contractors to provide anti-trafficking compliance plans... this legislation will reinforce our efforts to end human trafficking."

Finally, Congressman Magaziner stated, "The United States must never rest in combating human trafficking – especially when that trafficking is enabled by taxpayer dollars," emphasizing the bill's role in improving contract oversight.

The proposed act mandates several measures including requiring contractors to submit anti-trafficking compliance plans, expanding certification requirements, mandating investigations into credible violations by Inspectors General, assessing enhanced anti-trafficking efforts through legal amendments by OMB, and suspending payments upon noncompliance findings until remedial actions are taken.

The backdrop of this legislative push includes previous attempts like the End Human Trafficking in Government Contracts Act signed into law in 2022. Despite these measures, no referrals were made regarding investigated allegations within federal contracting spaces from 2022 through 2023 according to reports from several departments including Homeland Security and Defense. This new act aims at establishing systematic prevention strategies for future contracts.