The U.S. Senate passed legislation championed by Sen. Josh Hawley that provides $108.5 million to hire 200 new child exploitation investigators and analysts at the Department of Homeland Security.
We did it. The Senate just passed my legislation, the biggest investment by the federal government to combat child trafficking
Onto the House https://t.co/JSxc6PywBT
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) June 5, 2026
The provision, included in a broader reconciliation bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, addresses a severe staffing shortage at Homeland Security Investigations. Currently, only seven full-time specialists work to identify victims from child abuse material.
History of the Effort
The initiative builds on years of work to confront online child sexual exploitation and trafficking. In March 2026, Sen. Hawley chaired a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing titled “Lost and Exploited: Confronting Child Trafficking and the Failure to Protect America’s Most Vulnerable.”
During that hearing, former NFL quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow testified about the scale of the problem, as The Dallas Express reported at the time. Tebow, founder of the Tim Tebow Foundation, highlighted data showing 338,000 unique U.S. IP addresses linked to downloading, sharing, or distributing child rape images in a short period, with as many as 89,000 unidentified child victims appearing in such materials.
The Dallas Express previously covered Tebow’s broader anti-trafficking work, including his partnership with a North Texas venture capital firm raising $50 million for technology solutions to fight human trafficking.
Tebow’s foundation has focused on prevention, rescue, and survivor care for more than a decade, operating safe homes and partnering with law enforcement. In recent years, it has helped identify and rescue over 4,600 victims alongside partners.
Hawley’s provision is modeled on the Renewed Hope Act, which Tebow has supported in prior testimony.
Details of the New Funding
The $108.5 million will fund:
- 40 new forensic analysts at HSI’s Victim Identification Laboratory.
- 30 new child exploitation investigators at the same lab.
- 130 additional positions at field offices of Special Agents in Charge.
- A dedicated training program for federal, state, and local law enforcement.
Sen. Hawley stated that “The Senate just passed my legislation with Tim Tebow to rescue thousands of children trapped in sex trafficking. That’s two hundred new law enforcement officers to find and rescue kids trafficked by predators and a new initiative to coordinate local, state, and federal enforcement. This is the biggest surge against child trafficking ever by the federal government.”
Current Scale of Child Trafficking
Human trafficking affects millions worldwide. The International Labour Organization estimates 27.6 million people in forced labor globally, with sexual exploitation a leading form.
In the United States, the National Human Trafficking Hotline has identified more than 112,000 cases involving over 218,000 victims since its inception. In 2024 alone, it reported 11,999 potential cases involving 21,865 victims, with thousands involving minors.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children receives tens of thousands of reports of child sex trafficking annually, with 1 in 7 endangered runaways believed to be victims.
What Happens Next
The provision now moves to the House of Representatives as part of the reconciliation package. If enacted, it would mark a significant expansion of federal resources dedicated to victim identification and rescue.
Child exploitation cases have surged with the online distribution of abuse material. Limited staffing at agencies like HSI has left thousands of victims unidentified despite clear digital evidence. The new investigators aim to close that gap through better forensics, fieldwork, and coordination.
The legislation represents the largest single federal investment to date in combating child sex trafficking, according to its sponsor.
