Washington, D.C. – The House passed Congressman Nathaniel Moran (R-TX-01) and Senator John Cornyn’s (R-TX) legislation to prevent child sexual abuse, sending it to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The bipartisan Jenna Quinn Law authorizes existing grant funds to be used to train and educate students, teachers, school employees, caregivers, and other adults who work with children on sexual abuse prevention. The legislation was named after Jenna Quinn, a Texan who survived abuse as a young child. This bill was cosponsored by Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Congressman Michael McCaul (R-TX-10), and Congresswoman Susan Wild (D-PA-07).
“Each life is precious, and each life deserves protection at all stages,” said Congressman Moran. “I am confident that the Jenna Quinn Law will strengthen our efforts to prevent the evils of child sexual abuse, help identify children who have experienced or are currently experiencing it, and ensure these evils are stopped. Most importantly, it will help these children find pathways to healing. I know that there are children whose lives will forever be impacted for the better because of the Jenna Quinn Law.”
“Congress must ensure every state has robust resources to train those who work with children on how to identify and prevent the vicious cycle of child sexual abuse,” said Senator Cornyn. “This legislation, inspired by Texan Jenna Quinn, would give students, teachers, and caregivers more tools to protect vulnerable children nationwide, and I urge the President to sign it without delay.”
“There is no greater priority than to safeguard our children and youth from predators,” said Jenna Quinn, the namesake of the Jenna Quinn Law. “This law is the force behind multiplying the number of lives saved because education, prevention, and intervention were made more accessible.”
Watch Congressman Moran’s Full Floor Remarks
Specifically, the Jenna Quinn Law:
- Authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services to allow federal grants to be used for eligible entities for increasing evidence-based or informed training on sexual abuse prevention education and reporting to teachers and school employees, students, caregivers, and other adults who work with children.
- Ensures these grant recipients coordinate with local educational agencies to train students, professionals and volunteers who work with students on sexual abuse prevention, recognition, and reporting.
A Timeline of the Jenna Quinn Law:
- February 2024: Congressman Moran, Senator Cornyn, Senator Hassan, Congressman McCaul, and Congresswoman Wild introduced the Jenna Quinn Law.
- February 2024: The full Senate unanimously passed the Jenna Quinn Law.
- September 2024: During a House Committee on Education and the Workforce Committee markup, Congressman Moran
of the Jenna Quinn Law before its unanimous passage out of the committee.
Congressman Moran and Jenna Quinn, namesake of the legislation to prevent child sexual abuse
Namesake of the Jenna Quinn Law:
- Jenna Quinn has pioneered the national child sexual abuse prevention movement since 2004, after first being asked to speak in public and share her testimony as a young teenager. She has gone on to become an author, TED talk speaker, conference trainer, and the namesake of Jenna’s Law legislation on the state and federal levels.
- Passed unanimously on the state level in Texas in 2009, Jenna’s Law was the first child sexual abuse prevention education mandate in the U.S named after a survivor requiring K-12 sexual abuse prevention for students, school staff, and caregivers. More than half of the 50 states in America adopted legislation to reflect the Texas statute.
Need for the Jenna Quinn Law:
- In America alone, there are an estimated 42 million survivors of sexual abuse. This means one in four girls and one in 13 boys nationwide. More than 90 percent of children who are the victims of sexual abuse know and trust their abuser.
- According to a study, after Jenna’s Law passed in Texas, educators reported abuse at a rate of almost 4 times more after receiving education and instruction about abuse.
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