ICYMI: Rep. McBride Presses State Department Over Delay of Annual Trafficking in Persons Report

September 25, 2026 Press Release WILMINGTON, Del. — In case you missed it , last week, U.S. Representative Sarah McBride (D-Del.), member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, led 20 of her Democratic colleagues in writing to Secretary of State Marco Rubio demanding the immediate release of the 2026 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, an annual report that serves as a key tool in U.S. efforts to combat human trafficking internationally and hold foreign governments accountable for protecting victims and prosecuting traffickers. The report, which was due to Congress on June 30, is nearly three months past the deadline. This follows last year’s unprecedented delay of the report by three months. Read the full letter to Secretary Rubio here. “We write to raise serious concerns regarding the Department of State’s failure to release the Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, which is now more than two months past its statutory deadline…The repeated failure to issue this congressionally mandated report on time is unacceptable and raises serious questions about whether the State Department is giving the fight against human trafficking the priority and resources it demands,” the lawmakers wrote. The letter raises concerns about the Trump administration’s commitment to combating human trafficking and the capacity of the State Department’s anti-trafficking office to carry out its mission. The lawmakers pressed the department on staffing levels and permanent leadership in the office, as well as its decision to omit the TIP Report Heroes Program from the 2025 release. “The repeated delays in the publication of the TIP Report follow the Administration’s decision to significantly reduce staffing in the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office). Reports indicate that fewer than three dozen employees remain to carry out the federal government’s central anti-trafficking mission, including producing reports that assess anti-trafficking efforts across 188 countries. The loss of institutional expertise and lack of urgency in filling these gaps in personnel is deeply troubling,” the lawmakers continued. The lawmakers called on the State Department to explain when the 2026 report will be published and to provide answers by September 30 on staffing and leadership in its anti-trafficking office. They also urged the department to restore the staffing and institutional capacity needed to meet its reporting responsibilities and ensure future reports are published on time. “We urge the Department of State to immediately release the TIP Report and demonstrate that combating human trafficking remains a serious priority of this Administration. We further urge the Department to promptly appoint permanent leadership to the TIP Office and restore the staffing and institutional capacity necessary to fulfill its statutory responsibilities and ensure the timely publication of future reports,” the lawmakers concluded. Rep. McBride has been committed to transparency from the Department of State, specifically regarding the TIP Report. In July 2025, she questioned Deputy Secretary of State Michael Rigas at a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing about a 71 percent reduction in staff at the TIP Office. That September, Rep. McBride secured bipartisan committee approval of an amendment directing the department to report to Congress on how the cuts affected the TIP Report’s timeliness and accuracy. After Rep. McBride's continued efforts, the State Department released the 2025 report on September 29, nearly three months late. Read the full letter to Secretary Rubio here.