More than two dozen Democratic lawmakers are pressing the State Department to hand over a congressionally mandated report on human trafficking, which is late after Secretary of State Marco Rubio reorganized the department and downsized staff.
“The scourge of human trafficking transcends borders and represents a serious threat to U.S. national security,” the Democratic lawmakers wrote to Rubio on Wednesday, according to a copy of the letter obtained by NOTUS. “The annual report was due to Congress on June 30th; however, as we start the month of September, the Department has yet to release the 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report.”
The Democratic lawmakers, led by Virginia Rep. Don Beyer and including members of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the House Oversight panel, described the Trafficking in Persons report as “a key tool used by law enforcement, foreign governments, and nonprofit organizations in the fight against human trafficking.” They asked the department to explain why it hasn’t given it to Congress yet.