THE GOVERNMENT OF the United States fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts during the reporting period; therefore the United States remained on Tier 1. The government demonstrated serious and sustained efforts by investigating and prosecuting both sex and labor trafficking, and increasing the number of prosecutions and convictions; providing sendees to a greater number of trafficking victims; providing various types of immigration relief for foreign national victims; continuing engagement with survivors to improve programs and policies on human trafficking; enhancing outreach initiatives through the development of matenals for states and territories; and continuing funding for an NGO- operated national hotline and referral service that added text and online chat capabilities to improve accessibility. Although the government meets the minimum standards, anti-trafficking advocates continued to report that victim services were not always provided equitably, urging an increase in resources for, and equitable access to, comprehensive services across the country. Advocates reported alack of sustained effort to address labor trafficking compared to sex trafficking and also reported continued instances of state and local officials detaining or prosecuting trafficking victims for criminal activity related to their trafficking victimization.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE UNITED STATES

Increase investigation and prosecution of labor trafficking cases; increase resources for, and equitable access to, comprehensive victim services across the country; ensure services include access to substance use disorder sendees, economic and educational opportunities, and short-term and/or transitional housing for all victims, including male and LGBTI victims; better integrate screening protocols in the context of immigration enforcement to enhance victim identification and protection efforts; encourage state, local, and tribal authorities to adopt policies not to prosecute victims for crimes they were forced to commit in the course of their trafficking situations; increase survivor engagement, including by more systematically incorporating survivor input when forming policies, programs, and trainings; improve training for adjudicators of trafficking- related immigration benefits to reduce obstacles to processing; increase screening procedures to improve identification of trafficking victims, particularly among populations vulnerable to human trafficking, including at-risk youth, LGBTI individuals, and American Indians and Alaska Natives; enhance trafficking- related prevention efforts in temporary worker programs in the United States;