Chairman Comer Introduces the Survivor’s Voice Protection Act

WASHINGTON—House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) introduced the Survivor’s Voice Protection Act (H.R. 10389), a bill that ensures survivors can speak freely about sexual abuse, even if they signed a nondisclosure agreement. The bill also creates accountability for trusted individuals to protect minors by establishing an obligation to report suspected grooming behavior to law enforcement. This bill is a result of the Oversight Committee’s review of the federal investigations into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s crimes. 

“The federal government for decades failed the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s crimes. We sadly cannot undue the harm and abuse inflicted upon these women. However, we have an obligation to take action to reform our laws to ensure survivors are protected and abusers can be held accountable,” said Chairman Comer. “During our investigation, we’ve learned how powerful men weaponized nondisclosure agreements to silence survivors of sexual abuse. The Survivor’s Voice Protection Act ensures individuals with information about sexual abuse and survivors can speak freely about these crimes, despite any nondisclosure agreements. The bill also takes steps to prevent the grooming of minors and ensure accountability for those seeking to exploit children. The House Oversight Committee will continue our work to provide transparency for the American people and justice for survivors.” 

Representatives Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), and Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) join as original cosponsors of the Survivor’s Voice Protection Act. 

As part of the House Oversight Committee’s review of the federal government’s investigation of Epstein and Maxwell, it has conducted 19 depositions and transcribed interviews; released approximately 65,000 pages of documents from the Epstein estate, U.S. Department of Justice, and interview transcripts; and obtained Epstein’s bank records. Additionally, Chairman Comer referred two individuals to the Department of Justice for further investigation after a witness revealed allegations of sexual abuse. 

Summary of the Survivor’s Voice Protection Act: The Survivor’s Voice Protection Act ensures that private contractual provisions cannot be used to prevent survivors from disclosing sexual abuse—defined as any criminal sexual abuse and assault, the sexual grooming of minors, or human trafficking—while creating additional accountability for trusted individuals to protect minors by establishing a legal obligation for fiduciaries to report suspected grooming behavior to a law enforcement authority. Specifically, the bill would: 

• Protect survivor’s right to speak: Any clause of a nondisclosure contract or agreement is void and unenforceable if it prohibits any person, including the alleged victim of sexual abuse, from disclosing information about that sexual abuse. 

• Apply to existing agreements: Applies retroactively to any nondisclosure clause in a contract or agreement entered into before, on, or after the enactment of this Act. 

• Establish a duty to report grooming: Establishes a fiduciary’s duty to report to law enforcement any witnessed grooming of a minor that is believed to lead to criminal sexual abuse. Under this Act, a fiduciary means, “a guardian, trustee, executor, administrator, receiver, conservator, or any person acting in any fiduciary capacity for any person including an officer, director, employee, agent, or other participant in the management or conduct of the affairs of such a person.” If a fiduciary has reasonable cause to believe they have witnessed the grooming of a minor with the intention of criminal sexual abuse and fails to report to law enforcement, the victim of this violation, or the attorney general of any State, may bring a civil action against the fiduciary. 

• Define grooming in federal law for the first time: Defines grooming in federal law to mean conduct that is intended to establish an emotional connection with a minor, including manipulation, trust-building, or influence in order to facilitate acts of sexual conduct. 

The bill text can be found here.