Paris Hilton-backed bill to study troubled teen industry clears Congress

Legislation that would involve the federal government in reforming the troubled teen industry is headed to President Joe Biden’s desk.

The Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act cleared the House by an overwhelming majority Wednesday, after passing the Senate unanimously last week.

The bipartisan law mandates a federal investigation, with a report released every two years for a decade, into the prevalence and extent of child abuse and deaths in youth residential programs. The study will also examine the existing regulations and professional standards that govern the programs and make recommendations on how federal and local governments can improve their oversight.

The adoption of the bill is the culmination of years of activism by child welfare lawyers and survivors of the troubled teen industry—a constellation of boarding schools, treatment centers, wilderness camps and ranches for children with emotional or psychological problems—and high-profile scandals involving abuse and deaths goes back decades. Because most of the programs do not receive government funding, their rules are set by the states in which they operate, and many have escaped scrutiny thanks to spotty enforcement or legal loopholes, as detailed in previous NBC News investigations.

The National Academies, which advise policymakers and conduct the study, will be required to consult with child advocates, health professionals, program alumni, parents, facility operators, among others, and a wide range of government agencies.

A coalition of child welfare advocacy groups lobbied for the legislation, and celebrity Paris Hilton became closely involved in the effort, holding several demonstrations and press conferences in Washington, DC over the past three years calling for reform of the troubled teen industry.

“This moment is proof that our voices matter, that speaking out can spark change, and that no child should ever have to endure the horrors of abuse in silence,” Hilton said in a tweet after the vote. “I did this for the younger version of myself and the youth who were senselessly taken from us by the troubled teen industry.”

The Hilton Hotel heiress and reality TV star began pushing for tougher oversight of the facilities after detailing in a 2020 memoir and documentary — and in subsequent testimony before state lawmakers — the abuse she said she endured two decades ago in a facility in Utah.

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., one of the bill’s co-sponsors, credited Hilton and activists she worked with to get Congress to pay attention to the industry during remarks on the floor Tuesday.

“Survivors came to our offices again and again for years because they wanted to do something about these experiences to make it better for America’s children,” Khanna said.

The bill is a scaled-down version of legislation that youth rights advocates had pushed for, which would have established a set of rights for all children in the facilities — guaranteeing that the programs provide proper toiletries and nutrition; prohibiting them from withholding sleep, meals or hydration; and limits their use of isolation as punishment.