H.R. 1625 would authorize the Department of State to make cash awards for information on certain forms of human trafficking. The department currently has a rewards program that uses appropriated funds to offer cash awards to deter transnational organized crime. The act would broaden the program to explicitly include severe forms of human trafficking. Based on information about awards offered under that program, CBO expects that the department could offer individual awards of up to $1 million to $2 million under H.R. 1625. However, CBO has no basis for estimating whether implementing the act would have discretionary costs because we cannot determine whether the department would offer awards under this authority, or how many, or when such awards might be paid.
