Signing Statement 2018-026

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Text of the Signing Statement from the White House website

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Statement by the President       

   LAW & JUSTICE       --     Issued on: December 21, 2018

 

Today, I have signed into law S. 1312, the “Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017” (the “Act”).  The Act represents an important step in bolstering the United States Government’s efforts to combat human trafficking.

The Act, however, raises a constitutional concern.

Section 502 of the Act requires the Department of Justice to take “affirmative measures to avoid arresting, charging, or prosecuting human trafficking victims for any offense that is the direct result of their victimization.”  My Administration will interpret this provision consistent with the prosecutorial discretion of the executive branch and the President’s constitutional responsibility to faithfully execute the laws of the United States. 

 DONALD J. TRUMP]

THE WHITE HOUSE,
December 21, 2018.

 

 


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Annotations
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Sources for the Signing Statement

  1. White House website
  2. PDF from GPO
  3. HTML text at GPO

Text of the Affected Law

S. 1312, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017, has been designated as Public Law number 115-393.

The text of S. 1312 from the Government Printing Office (GPO) is available as follows:

1.  PDF downloaded from the GPO
2.  PDF on the GPO website
3.  Plain text from the GPO
4.  Enrolled text from the GPO