Wyden Pushes Trump Administration To Ensure No Human Trafficking, Forced Labor Exist In Government Contract Supply Chains
Senators urge administration officials to comply with previous executive orders to prevent human trafficking
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., this week urged the Trump administration to do more to ensure the federal government does not do business with contractors that have human trafficking or forced labor in their supply chains of companies.
In a letter with Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., to Attorney General William Barr, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia and Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan, the senators urged the Trump administration to do everything in its power to ensure the federal government is not complicit in human trafficking or forced labor. The senators urged administration officials to comply with previous executive orders that ensure federal contracts do not directly or indirectly involve human trafficking.
“The U.S. government is the largest single purchaser of goods and services in the world, and EOs 13126 and 13627 require agencies to take important steps to prevent the federal government from inadvertently supporting forced labor or human trafficking activities through its procurement. Your agencies are tasked with enforcing our human trafficking and forced labor laws, and, as such, you have a responsibility to lead the federal government’s efforts to make sure its own supply chain does not involve either,” the senators wrote.
Executive Order 13126, Prohibition of Acquisition of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labor, was signed by President Bill Clinton on June 12, 1999, and required federal contractors to certify that they made a “good faith effort” to determine whether forced or indentured child labor was used to produce or manufacture any product covered under the contract in question. Executive Order 13627, Strengthening Protections Against Trafficking In Persons In Federal Contracts, was signed by President Barack Obama on September 25, 2012, and required federal agencies to ensure the federal procurement of goods and services does not directly or indirectly involve human trafficking. The senators urged Trump administration officials to comply with these executives orders.
The senators asked the head of each agency tasked with enforcing human trafficking and forced labor laws to provide specific information on their efforts to keep human trafficking and forced labor out of the federal government’s procurement supply chain.
A copy of the letter is available here.
Next Article Previous Article
