FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: media@naag.org
District of Columbia, April 16, 2025— The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) sent a letter this week to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy informing him of an issue of significant concern with the National Human Trafficking Hotline (“Hotline”). The letter, sent on behalf of a bipartisan coalition of 41 state and territory attorneys general, urges better cooperation with local law enforcement from the next operator of the Hotline.
Since 2007, Polaris has operated the Hotline with millions of dollars in funding authorized by Congress. States rely on the Hotline to forward third-party tips of suspected human trafficking to local law enforcement to arrest traffickers, safely recover victims, and uncover evidence of trafficking rings and operations. It was recently discovered that Polaris was failing to forward third-party tips about adult victims to state law enforcement except in limited circumstances. Additionally, states have often discovered a delay of even several months before the Hotline shared those tips with states.
This practice contradicts Polaris’s advertising and what states and organizations expect. In February 2023, a coalition of 36 Attorneys General requested that Congress mandate the Hotline to report third-party tips to local law enforcement. Then-HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra responded by incorporating specific coordination requirements with law enforcement in the following award notice.
HHS is now seeking applicants for a new funding award, requiring the Hotline operator to develop a plan for working with law enforcement. In their letter, the Attorneys General emphasized the need for timely reporting of trafficking tips to local law enforcement, stating, “We have worked hard to teach the public the signs of trafficking and how to report it when they think they see it. But sending the public to the Hotline when they see someone in trouble is futile if the organization running it refuses to share those tips and share them in a timely manner.”
They clarified, “We are not asking that the Hotline report calls from victims who say they do not want their call reported. But we are asking them to send us the tips they get from anyone other than the victim. Those tips matter, and reporting those tips can save lives.”
The letter was led by Attorneys General Lynn Fitch (Mississippi), Kathy Jennings (Delaware), Liz Murrill (Louisiana), and Aaron Ford (Nevada). The letter was also signed by the Attorneys General of the following states and territories: Alabama, Alaska, American Samoa, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
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The National Association of Attorneys General is a nonpartisan organization of the attorneys general of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. NAAG provides a forum for the exchange of knowledge, experiences, and insights on legal and law enforcement issues, and fosters bipartisan collaboration among its members to address common challenges and advance the rule of law. For more information, please visit NAAG’s website.