(The Center Square) – A federal watchdog and lawmakers want to see better management of the National Human Trafficking Hotline.
Empower Oversight is pressing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to extend its deadline for applicants to operate the hotline; the current application deadline is May 30, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. The contract pays up to $9 million annually.
The current contractor is Polaris, an organization that faces allegations from state attorneys general and a whistleblower alike.
Polaris has run the program since 2007. However, a whistleblower informed U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, that Polaris has not reported information involving sex trafficking of minors to the proper authorities.
It comes after a bipartisan group of attorneys general sent HHS letters in 2023 and 2025 expressing similar concerns when it came to adult sex trafficking.
“These alleged failures by Polaris to report instances of human trafficking are deeply concerning and, if they are accurate, changes to the operation of the NHTH must be made,” Grassley wrote in a letter to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Polaris did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Grassley asked Kennedy several questions in the letter, including what HHS has done to address the concerns raised by the bipartisan group of attorneys general; how it is ensuring Polaris properly reports every tip it receives; and how it will ensure there’s no conflict of interest with Katherine Chon, Polaris’s co-founder, serving as the director of the Office of Trafficking In Persons within the United States Department of State.
“Chairman Grassley’s letter to Secretary Kennedy highlighted significant questions based on the protected whistleblower disclosures provided by Empower Oversight’s client,” Empower Oversight President Tristan Leavitt told The Center Square in a telephone interview. “Despite inquiries from attorneys general across the country and a whistleblower’s disclosures, it’s disappointing that HHS has yet to respond to Chairman Grassley on this absolutely critical issue – especially as the grant deadline application period quickly approaches.”
The April 2025 letter HHS received from 41 state Attorneys General follows up on a 2023 letter many AGs sent. They sent the follow-up letter because their concerns have gone unaddressed.
In their letter, the AGs said the Hotline operator must quickly report trafficking tips to local law enforcement when appropriate.
“We have worked hard to teach the public the signs of trafficking and how to report it when they think they see it,” they wrote%20sent%20a%20letter%20this%20week%20to%20Department%20of%20Health%20and%20Human%20Services%20(HHS)%20Secretary%20Robert%20Kennedy%20informing%20him%20of%20an%20issue%20of%20significant%20concern%20with%20the%20National%20Human%20Trafficking%20Hotline%20(%E2%80%9CHotline%E2%80%9D).%20The%20letter,%20sent%20on%20behalf%20of%20a%20bipartisan%20coalition%20of%2041%20state%20and%20territory%20attorneys%20general,%20urges%20better%20cooperation%20with%20local%20law%20enforcement%20from%20the%20next%20operator%20of%20the%20Hotline.%20Since%202007,%20Polaris%20has%20operated%20the%20Hotline%20with%20millions%20of%20dollars%20in%20funding%20authorized%20by%20Congress.%20States%20rely%20on%20the%20Hotline%20to%20forward%20third-party%20tips%20of%20suspected%20human%20trafficking%20to%20local%20law%20enforcement%20to%20arrest%20traffickers,%20safely%20recover%20victims,%20and%20uncover%20evidence%20of%20trafficking%20rings%20and%20operations.%20It%20was%20recently%20discovered%20that%20Polaris%20was%20failing%20to%20forward%20third-party%20tips%20about%20adult%20victims%20to%20state%20law%20enforcement%20except%20in%20limited%20circumstances.%20Additionally,%20states%20have%20often%20discovered%20a%20delay%20of%20even%20several%20months%20before%20the%20Hotline%20shared%20those%20tips%20with%20states.%20This%20practice%20contradicts%20Polaris%E2%80%99s%20advertising%20and%20what%20states%20and%20organizations%20expect.%20In%20February%202023,%20a%20coalition%20of%2036%20Attorneys%20General%20requested%20that%20Congress%20mandate%20the%20Hotline%20to%20report%20third-party%20tips%20to%20local%20law%20enforcement.%20Then-HHS%20Secretary%20Xavier%20Becerra%20responded%20by%20incorporating%20specific%20coordination%20requirements%20with%20law%20enforcement%20in%20the%20following%20award%20notice.%20HHS%20is%20now%20seeking%20applicants%20for%20a%20new%20funding%20award,%20requiring%20the%20Hotline%20operator%20to%20develop%20a%20plan%20for%20working%20with%20law%20enforcement.%20In%20their%20letter,%20the%20Attorneys%20General%20emphasized%20the%20need%20for%20timely%20reporting%20of%20trafficking%20tips%20to%20local%20law%20enforcement,%20stating,%20%E2%80%9CWe%20have%20worked%20hard%20to%20teach%20the%20public%20the%20signs%20of%20trafficking%20and%20how%20to%20report%20it%20when%20they%20think%20they%20see%20it.%20But%20sending%20the%20public%20to%20the%20Hotline%20when%20they%20see%20someone%20in%20trouble%20is%20futile%20if%20the%20organization%20running%20it%20refuses%20to%20share%20those%20tips%20and%20share%20them%20in%20a%20timely%20manner.%E2%80%9D%20They%20clarified,%20%E2%80%9CWe%20are%20not%20asking%20that%20the%20Hotline%20report%20calls%20from%20victims%20who%20say%20they%20do%20not%20want%20their%20call%20reported.%20But%20we%20are%20asking%20them%20to%20send%20us%20the%20tips%20they%20get%20from%20anyone%20other%20than%20the%20victim.%20Those%20tips%20matter,%20and%20reporting%20those%20tips%20can%20save%20lives.%E2%80%9D%20The%20letter%20was%20led%20by%20Attorneys%20General%20Lynn%20Fitch%20(Mississippi),%20Kathy%20Jennings%20(Delaware),%20Liz%20Murrill%20(Louisiana),%20and%20Aaron%20Ford%20(Nevada).%20The%20letter%20was%20also%20signed%20by%20the%20Attorneys%20General%20of%20the%20following%20states%20and%20territories:%20Alabama,%20Alaska,%20American%20Samoa,%20Arkansas,%20California,%20Colorado,%20Florida,%20Georgia,%20Hawaii,%20Idaho,%20Illinois,%20Indiana,%20Iowa,%20Kentucky,%20Michigan,%20Missouri,%20Nebraska,%20New%20Hampshire,%20New%20Mexico,%20New%20York,%20North%20Carolina,%20North%20Dakota,%20Ohio,%20Oklahoma,%20Oregon,%20Pennsylvania,%20Rhode%20Island,%20South%20Carolina,%20South%20Dakota,%20Tennessee,%20Utah,%20Vermont,%20Virginia,%20West%20Virginia,%20Wisconsin,%20and%20Wyoming.%20###%20The%20National%20Association%20of%20Attorneys%20General%20is%20a%20nonpartisan%20organization%20of%20the%20attorneys%20general%20of%20the%2050%20states,%20the%20District%20of%20Columbia,%20and%20U.S.%20territories.%20NAAG%20provides%20a%20forum%20for%20the%20exchange%20of%20knowledge,%20experiences,%20and%20insights%20on%20legal%20and%20law%20enforcement%20issues,%20and%20fosters%20bipartisan%20collaboration%20among%20its%20members%20to%20address%20common%20challenges%20and%20advance%20the%20rule%20of%20law.%20For%20more%20information,%20please%20visit%20NAAG%E2%80%99s%20website.%20Media%20Contact%20media@naag.org%20Sign-up%20to%20receive%20NAAG%E2%80%99s%20monthly%20newsletter.%20Connect%20with%20NAAG%20and%20the%20Attorney%20General%20Community%20Create%20a%20NAAG%20account%20to%20subscribe%20to%20our%20newsletters%20or%20mailing%20lists.%20Create%20Account%20Subscribe%20Marble%20columns%20and%20the%20top%20of%20a%20federal%20building%20scroll%20to%20filters%20White%20Logo%20for%20the%20National%20Association%20of%20Attorneys%20General%201850%20M%20Street%20NW%2012th%20floor%20Washington,%20DC%2020036%20TEL%20202-326-6000%20EMAIL%20Youtube%20Issues%20Our%20Work%20Events%20&%20Training%20News%20&%20Resources%20Attorneys%20General%20About%20NAAG%20About%20NAMFCU%20Find%20My%20AG%20Consumer%20Complaints%20Member%20Benefits%20Contact%20Us%20Accessibility%20Statement%20Privacy%20&%20Cookies%20Notice%20Sitemap%20Member%20Login%20About%20the%20National%20Association%20of%20Attorneys%20General%20As%20the%20nonpartisan%20national%20forum%20for%20America’s%20state%20and%20territory%20attorneys%20general%20and%20their%20staff,%20NAAG%20provides%20collaboration,%20insight,%20and%20expertise%20to%20empower%20and%20champion%20America’s%20attorneys%20general.%20Learn%20More%20%C2%A9%202025%20COPYRIGHT%20NATIONAL%20ASSOCIATION%20OF%20ATTORNEYS%20GENERAL%20WEBSITE%20BY%20YOKO%20CO%20To%20provide%20you%20more%20clarity%20about%20how%20we%20collect,%20store%20and%20use%20personal%20information,%20and%20your%20rights%20to%20control%20that%20information,%20we%20have%20updated%20our%20privacy%20policy,%20which%20also%20explains%20how%20we%20use%20cookies.%20You%20consent%20to%20our%20cookies%20if%20you%20continue%20to%20use%20our%20website.I%20Agree). “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.”
“We are not asking that the Hotline report calls from victims who say they do not want their call reported,” they added. “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.”
