CBS19

Two members of Virginia’s congressional delegation have reintroduced legislation to strengthen federal efforts to rescue U.S. children from sexual exploitation and abuse.

According to a release, Representatives Abigail Spanberger (D-VA-7th) and Ben Cline (R-VA-6th) reintroduced the Child Response to Exploitation and Sexual Abuse of Children in Unaddressed Emergencies Act, also known as the Chile RESCUE Act.

This legislation before the U.S. House would create a national commission to study proactive strategies and identify resources needed to locate and rescue children from sexual exploitation and abuse.

“The sexual exploitation and abuse of children is an epidemic in our country. We must consider every avenue to protect America’s children and prosecute the criminals who commit these horrors,” said Spanberger. “For more than a decade, the Department of Justice has been required by law to implement a national strategy to prevent this exploitation and abuse, but its efforts have not lived up to this promise. While local child protective services and law enforcement work around the clock to protect children in their communities, the scale of the problem is too large for these agencies alone. Our bipartisan legislation would implement an improved, coordinated federal strategy to rescue American children from dangerous, negligent, and traumatic situations.”

“For several years, I have supported the great work of the Bedford, VA-based Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, one of over 60 task forces combating online child predators across the country,” said Cline. 

The release says this legislation would require the U.S. Attorney General to establish a national working group, known as the U.S. Commission on Children in  Imminent Danger, to look into policing strategies and resource needs to rescue children in the United States from sexual exploitation and abuse online.

It would bring together experts from the federal government, such as the FBI and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and the private sector to create a national strategy and identify how to best respond to a changing landscape and prevent child abuse.

To read the full bill, click here.