Letter to Reps. Hensarling and Waters Supporting End Banking for Human Traffickers Act (H.R.2219)

The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition (FACT Coalition) sent a letter to House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling and Ranking Member Maxine Waters in support of the bipartisan End Banking for Human Traffickers Act of 2017 (H.R.2219), which would increase the role of financial policymakers and the financial industry in combating human trafficking. The full letter can be downloaded here.

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December 11, 2017

The Honorable Jeb Hensarling
Chairman, Financial Services Committee
U.S. House of Representatives
2228 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Maxine Waters
Ranking Member, Financial Services Committee
U.S. House of Representatives
2221 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

RE: Support the “End Banking for Human Traffickers Act of 2017” (H.R.2219)

Dear Chairman Hensarling and Ranking Member Waters,

We are writing on behalf of the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency (FACT) Coalition to urge you to support the bipartisan “End Banking for Human Traffickers Act of 2017” (H.R.2219), which would increase the role of financial policymakers and the financial industry in combating human trafficking. The FACT Coalition is a non-partisan alliance of more than 100 state, national, and international organizations that promotes policies to combat the harmful impacts of corrupt financial practices. [1]

Requiring cabinet-level officials to develop follow-the-money strategies to counter human trafficking is a critical step in successfully fighting this crime.

The International Labor Organization estimates that 25 million people around the world are currently the victims of human trafficking.[2] Forced labor is a uniquely heinous crime driven by a very common motivation — greed. Human trafficking generates roughly $150 billion in illicit profits each year, making it the third- or fourth-largest illegal industry in the world (depending on the measurement).[3] For too long, governmental policies have neglected the financial aspect to this crime. H.R.2219 is a strong first step toward reorienting our approach to combat the underlying driver of this despicable phenomenon.

We urge you to support H.R.2219. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Clark Gascoigne at +1 (202) 810-1334 or cgascoigne@thefactcoalition.org.

Sincerely,

Gary Kalman
Executive Director
The FACT Coalition

Clark Gascoigne
Deputy Director
The FACT Coalition

cc: Members of the U.S. House Financial Services Committee

FOOTNOTES:

For a list of FACT Coalition members, visit https://thefactcoalition.org/about/coalition-members-and-supporters/.
International Labour Organization, “Global Estimates of Modern Slavery: Forced Labour and Forced Marriage”, September 19, 2017, http://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_575479/lang–en/index.htm.
Channing May, “Transnational Crime and the Developing World”, Global Financial Integrity, March 27, 2017, http://www.gfintegrity.org/report/transnational-crime-and-the-developing-world/.

About the FACT Coalition

The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency (FACT) Coalition is a non-partisan alliance of more than 100 state, national, and international organizations working toward a fair tax system that addresses the challenges of a global economy and promoting policies to combat the harmful impacts of corrupt financial practices.

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