# 119-hr-9071: Preventing Trafficking of Minors Act of 2026

119-hr-9071, Preventing Trafficking of Minors Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Nehls, Troy E. [R-TX-22] (R-TX); status introduced (as of 2026-07-16).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9071
- As of: 2026-07-16
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-9071
- Congress: 119
- Title: Preventing Trafficking of Minors Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-05-29
- Sponsor: Rep. Nehls, Troy E. [R-TX-22] (R-TX)
- Cosponsors: 3
- Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-07-16

## Summary

**Strengthens federal criminal penalties for sexual exploitation of minors.** It would expand the federal coercion and enticement law to cover six specific commercial-sex activities involving anyone under 18 and bar common defenses such as claiming the victim was an adult. - Creates broader protection for children by criminalizing persuading, inducing, enticing, engaging in, soliciting, paying for, entering to commit, or attempting commercial sex acts with persons under 18. "Sex act" includes sexual contact. - Limits defenses prosecutors must overcome by making it not a defense that the defendant did not know the victim's age or reasonably believed the victim was 18, if the defendant had a reasonable opportunity to observe the victim. It also removes the need to prove force, fraud, or coercion for minors and bars claiming an undercover officer posed as a defense. - Expands where the law reaches by covering mail, telephone, internet, and special maritime and territorial jurisdiction. Penalties would start at 10 years, rise to at least 15 years if the minor is under 14, and can extend to life. The law would take effect 180 days after enactment and apply to offenses after that date.

## Cosponsors (3)

- Rep. Hunt, Wesley [R-TX-38] (R-TX), 2026-05-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Evans, Gabe [R-CO-8] (R-CO), 2026-05-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Kiley, Kevin [I-CA-3] (I-CA), 2026-07-14T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- If court strikes part, rest stays: benefit, low. This bill would include a severability rule saying that if a court finds one part unconstitutional, the rest of the law would still stand. The clause would take effect 180 days after enactment as part of the Act.
- Stronger federal bans on trafficking minors: mixed, medium. This bill would broaden federal criminal rules against commercial sex with anyone under 18. It would make six types of conduct illegal when done by mail, phone, internet, or in certain federal areas, including persuading a minor into commercial sex, paying for sex with a minor, entering a place to…
- Start date for new rules: mixed, low. This bill would take effect 180 days after enactment. It would apply only to offenses committed on or after that date. People and courts would use that date to decide whether the new bans, defenses limits, and penalties apply to a given case.

## Related bills

- 119-hr-3277: Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act
- 119-hr-2853: Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025
- 119-hr-516: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify the railroad track maintenance credit.
- 119-hr-1551: Protect and Serve Act of 2025
- 119-hres-719: Honoring the life and legacy of Charles Charlie James Kirk.
- 119-hr-1628: 761st Tank Battalion Congressional Gold Medal Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-9071 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/9071)

## Related
- [119-hr-3277: Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3277)
- [119-hr-2853: Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2853)
- [119-hr-516: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify the railroad track mainten…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-516)
- [119-hr-1551: Protect and Serve Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1551)
- [119-hres-719: Honoring the life and legacy of Charles Charlie James Kirk.](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hres-719)
- [119-hr-1628: 761st Tank Battalion Congressional Gold Medal Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1628)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9071 (as of 2026-07-16).