# 119-hr-4323: Trafficking Survivors Relief Act

119-hr-4323, Trafficking Survivors Relief Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Fry, Russell [R-SC-7] (R-SC); status became_law (as of 2026-07-19).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4323
- As of: 2026-07-19
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-4323
- Congress: 119
- Title: Trafficking Survivors Relief Act
- Status: became_law
- Introduced: 2025-07-10
- Sponsor: Rep. Fry, Russell [R-SC-7] (R-SC)
- Cosponsors: 19
- Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-07-19

## Summary

**A federal path to vacate convictions and expunge arrests for trafficking survivors** creates a clear legal route for people whose crimes were caused by human trafficking to clear records and seek sentence relief. The law also adds a trafficking-specific duress defense in federal cases and builds protections for confidentiality and legal help. - Survivors: It lets eligible survivors move to vacate Level A convictions and expunge Level A arrests, with limited expungement for some Level B arrests, allows sentence reductions when conduct was directly caused by trafficking, applies retroactively, and bars filing fees for these motions. - Defendants and courts: It creates a new duress-style defense for trafficking victims in covered federal offenses and requires courts to consider motions under a preponderance standard, including hearing and sealing protections for records tied to those defenses. - Federal agencies and services: U.S. Attorneys must report on requests for relief, the Government Accountability Office will evaluate access and outcomes, training on trafficking indicators is required, and federal grant programs cannot bar use of funds for post-conviction representation.

## Cosponsors (19)

- Rep. Wagner, Ann [R-MO-2] (R-MO), 2025-07-10T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Johnson, Henry C. "Hank" [D-GA-4] (D-GA), 2025-07-10T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Thompson, Mike [D-CA-4] (D-CA), 2025-07-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Lieu, Ted [D-CA-36] (D-CA), 2025-07-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Owens, Burgess [R-UT-4] (R-UT), 2025-07-16T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. McBride, Sarah [D-DE-At Large] (D-DE), 2025-07-21T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Kean, Thomas H. [R-NJ-7] (R-NJ), 2025-07-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Smith, Christopher H. [R-NJ-4] (R-NJ), 2025-07-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Kiley, Kevin [I-CA-3] (I-CA), 2025-08-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Schmidt, Derek [R-KS-2] (R-KS), 2025-08-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Carter, Earl L. "Buddy" [R-GA-1] (R-GA), 2025-08-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Dingell, Debbie [D-MI-6] (D-MI), 2025-08-12T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Rutherford, John H. [R-FL-5] (R-FL), 2025-08-12T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Self, Keith [R-TX-3] (R-TX), 2025-08-12T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Harris, Mark [R-NC-8] (R-NC), 2025-08-15T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Miller, Max L. [R-OH-7] (R-OH), 2025-09-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. García, Jesús G. "Chuy" [D-IL-4] (D-IL), 2025-09-04T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Vindman, Eugene Simon [D-VA-7] (D-VA), 2025-09-09T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Landsman, Greg [D-OH-1] (D-OH), 2025-09-10T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Clear criminal records tied to trafficking: benefit, high. You can ask a court to vacate a conviction or expunge an arrest if the conduct was a direct result of being trafficked. This covers Level A convictions and arrests, and Level B arrests that ended in acquittal, dismissal, or were reduced and later cleared. There are no filing or processing fees, and…
- New duress defense for trafficking victims: benefit, high. If you face a covered federal charge, you can claim duress by showing you were a trafficking victim when the act happened. The court can seal records about the defense until a conviction is entered. Not using, or losing, this defense does not block you from arguing for a lighter sentence or post‑co…
- Shorter prison terms for trafficking survivors: benefit, high. If you are serving time for a Level A or Level B offense caused by trafficking, you can ask the court to cut your sentence. The judge must find by a preponderance of the evidence that trafficking directly caused the offense. The judge weighs normal sentencing factors and any danger to others, and v…
- Grants can fund post-conviction legal help: benefit, medium. The Office of Justice Programs and the Office on Violence Against Women cannot ban grantees from using grant funds for post‑conviction relief representation. This opens more funding paths for lawyers to help survivors clear records and seek relief.
- Crime victims' rights stay in place: benefit, low. The law keeps crime victims’ rights under 18 U.S.C. 3771 in force. The new record‑clearing, sentencing, and defense rules do not override those rights.

## Related bills

- 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-hr-6130: ASAP Act
- 119-hr-452: Miracle on Ice Congressional Gold Medal Act
- 119-hr-842: Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act
- 119-hr-1422: Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act of 2025
- 119-hr-2102: Major Richard Star Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-4323 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4323)

## Related
- [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877)
- [119-hr-6130: ASAP Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-6130)
- [119-hr-452: Miracle on Ice Congressional Gold Medal Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-452)
- [119-hr-842: Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage A…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-842)
- [119-hr-1422: Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1422)
- [119-hr-2102: Major Richard Star Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2102)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4323 (as of 2026-07-19).