Title 6Domestic SecurityRelease 119-73

§642 Training for Department personnel to identify human trafficking

Title 6 › Chapter CHAPTER 1— - HOMELAND SECURITY ORGANIZATION › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER XVII— - ANTI-TRAFFICKING TRAINING FOR DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY PERSONNEL › § 642

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Within 180 days after May 29, 2015, the Secretary must set up a program to train and retrain Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and other Department staff the Secretary picks. The training must teach how to deter, find, and disrupt human trafficking and, when appropriate, stop a suspected trafficker while doing their normal jobs. Staff must also get regular updates with new information that matters for their duties, as allowed by information and privacy laws. Training can be in-person or online. It must cover how to spot possible victims and traffickers, how certain staff should approach a suspected victim without alerting a trafficker, training suited to the work location, any other topics the Secretary chooses, and a test or check after training. The Secretary must review the program every year to keep it up to date with current trafficking methods and trends.

Full Legal Text

Title 6, §642

Domestic Security — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Not later than 180 days after May 29, 2015, the Secretary shall implement a program to—
(1)train and periodically retrain relevant Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and other Department personnel that the Secretary considers appropriate, with respect to how to effectively deter, detect, and disrupt human trafficking, and, where appropriate, interdict a suspected perpetrator of human trafficking, during the course of their primary roles and responsibilities; and
(2)ensure that the personnel referred to in paragraph (1) regularly receive current information on matters related to the detection of human trafficking, including information that becomes available outside of the Department’s initial or periodic retraining schedule, to the extent relevant to their official duties and consistent with applicable information and privacy laws.
(b)The training referred to in subsection (a) may be conducted through in-class or virtual learning capabilities, and shall include—
(1)methods for identifying suspected victims of human trafficking and, where appropriate, perpetrators of human trafficking;
(2)for appropriate personnel, methods to approach a suspected victim of human trafficking, where appropriate, in a manner that is sensitive to the suspected victim and is not likely to alert a suspected perpetrator of human trafficking;
(3)training that is most appropriate for a particular location or environment in which the personnel receiving such training perform their official duties;
(4)other topics determined by the Secretary to be appropriate; and
(5)a post-training evaluation for personnel receiving the training.
(c)The Secretary shall annually reassess the training program established under subsection (a) to ensure it is consistent with current techniques, patterns, and trends associated with human trafficking.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was enacted as part of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015, and not as part of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 which comprises this chapter.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

6 U.S.C. § 642

Title 6Domestic Security

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73