CHILD PROTECTION COMPACT ACT

Your Prayers are needed Today!

From Beth Yeager, Women of Vision Headquarters
In the midst of our Thanksgiving, would you be willing to pray on behalf of the millions of children, women and men trapped in modern day slavery? Will you advocate for them?

We are at the 11th hour to bring the CPCA bill to a Senate vote. It is currently being held up by Senators Jim DeMint (SC)and Dr. Tom Coburn (OK) over issues of funding. They are respectively Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Senate Steering Committee. Until the recent election, there was no opposition.

The Congressional Budget Office report says the CPCA will only cost $1 million to implement in FY11 with more than enough funding to carry out the first year of the CPCA provisions and possibly enough to cover 3-5 years. It should be budget neutral.

World Vision volunteers and staff are working behind the scenes to relay the importance of passing this bill. Please pray that these senators, who are rightfully concerned about budget deficits, will not stand in the way of good work to end end modern day slavery.

Lord hear our prayers!

Child Protection Compact Act FAQ
Rebuttals to Arguments (Possible concerns of Sen. DeMint)
1. Is this bill duplicative of other laws like the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act?
*No. This bill is directly complementary to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2008. The CPCA adds a crucial tool to U.S. policies against slavery and will allow the TIP office the flexibility to engage these countries in the manner deemed most effective by the TIP office.

2. Can't we just wait next year and include this bill in the next Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act that is set to be introduced in the next Congress?
*Passing the bill now is the easiest and best course of action. It is an easy win in the fight against slavery and the "fight" can be further strengthened by the TVPA reauthorization process next year.

3. Doesn't this bill cost too much?
*No. This is a very modest measure that has a high rate of return. The State Department Trafficking in Persons office (TIP) has been an excellent steward of its U.S. foreign assistance funds over the past seven years. However, the TIP office's modest resources are no match for the growth in child exploitation - a crime that brought in $32 billion for human traffickers last year.

About the CPCA Bill
Child Protection Compact Act (CPCA) Senate Bill (S3184)
This bill will provide targeted resources to countries that have shown the political will to combat human trafficking but lack the resources and capacity to enforce that will. The CPCA expresses a Sense of Congress that $30 million be appropriated over three years for the State Department Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Office to support targeted investments in eligible "focus countries" that have demonstrated a commitment to tackle the problem but lack necessary resources and technical skill.

An important feature of the bill is the requirement that focus countries enter into a "Child Protection Compact" with the United States that sets quantifiable goals for protecting children and deterring crime. The US is considered the international leader in the fight against slavery and this legislation adds a crucial tool to US policies in that fight.

SPS Chapter Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father,

We come before you in the Name of Jesus asking that you would move on the hearts of Senators Jim DeMint (SC)and Dr. Tom Coburn (OK) and that they would have compassion on the victims of human trafficking which would override their logic and concern for funding.  Give them a glimpse of the atrocities that surround this degrading practice somewhere in their day today.  Let them encounter first had evidence of the need for prevention of this crime against humanity.  Give them a visual imagine in their minds of their own children and grandchildren and what they would do to prevent this from happening to one of them.  Let this visual image be a way into their hearts that would turn them away from their current questioning to a definitive "Yes!" for the passage of this bill.  Let them have clear answers to any of their questions that would prove to them that this bill is necessary and imperative.  Thank you for opening the doors for the passage of the Child Protection Compact Act.

In Jesus Name we pray. Amen