bill raising trafficking penalties to first-degree felony

The text as introduced · 2,538 words

By: Guillen
H.B. No. 4816

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the punishment for certain criminal conduct involving

trafficking of persons, the human trafficking prevention

coordinating council and the human trafficking prevention task

force; increasing criminal penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 20A.02, Penal Code, is amended to read as

follows:

Sec. 20A.02. TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS. (a) A person commits

an offense if the person knowingly:

(1) traffics another person with the intent that the

trafficked person engage in forced labor or services;

(2) receives a benefit from participating in a venture

that involves an activity described by Subdivision (1), including

by receiving labor or services the person knows are forced labor or

services;

(3) traffics another person and, through force, fraud,

or coercion, causes the trafficked person to engage in conduct

prohibited by:

(A) Section 43.02 (Prostitution);

(B) Section 43.03 (Promotion of Prostitution);

(B-1) Section 43.031 (Online Promotion of

Prostitution);

(C) Section 43.04 (Aggravated Promotion of

Prostitution);

(C-1) Section 43.041 (Aggravated Online

Promotion of Prostitution); or

(D) Section 43.05 (Compelling Prostitution);

(4) receives a benefit from participating in a venture

that involves an activity described by Subdivision (3) or engages

in sexual conduct with a person trafficked in the manner described

in Subdivision (3);

(5) traffics a child or disabled individual with the

intent that the trafficked child or disabled individual engage in

forced labor or services;

(6) receives a benefit from participating in a venture

that involves an activity described by Subdivision (5), including

by receiving labor or services the person knows are forced labor or

services;

(7) traffics a child or disabled individual and by any

means causes the trafficked child or disabled individual to engage

in, or become the victim of, conduct prohibited by:

(A) Section 21.02 (Continuous Sexual Abuse of

Young Child or Disabled Individual);

(B) Section 21.11 (Indecency with a Child);

(C) Section 22.011 (Sexual Assault);

(D) Section 22.021 (Aggravated Sexual Assault);

(E) Section 43.02 (Prostitution);

(E-1) Section 43.021 (Solicitation of

Prostitution);

(F) Section 43.03 (Promotion of Prostitution);

(F-1) Section 43.031 (Online Promotion of

Prostitution);

(G) Section 43.04 (Aggravated Promotion of

Prostitution);

(G-1) Section 43.041 (Aggravated Online

Promotion of Prostitution);

(H) Section 43.05 (Compelling Prostitution);

(I) Section 43.25 (Sexual Performance by a

Child);

(J) Section 43.251 (Employment Harmful to

Children); or

(K) Section 43.26 (Possession or Promotion of

Child Pornography); or

(8) receives a benefit from participating in a venture

that involves an activity described by Subdivision (7) or engages

in sexual conduct with a child or disabled individual trafficked in

the manner described in Subdivision (7).

(a-1) Repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 807 (H.B.

1540), Sec. 62(5) and Ch. 905 (H.B. 3521), Sec. 2, eff. September 1,

2021.

Text of subsection as amended by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 93

(S.B. 1527), Sec. 2.02

(b) Except as otherwise provided by Subsection (b-1), an

offense under this section is a felony of the first second degree.

An offense under this section is a felony of the first degree if:

(1) the applicable conduct constitutes an offense

under Subsection (a)(5), (6), (7), or (8), regardless of whether

the actor knows the age of the child or whether the actor knows the

victim is disabled at the time of the offense;

(2) the commission of the offense results in serious

bodily injury to or the death of the person who is trafficked;

(3) the commission of the offense results in the death

of an unborn child of the person who is trafficked; or

(4) the actor:

(A) used or exhibited a deadly weapon during the

commission of the offense;

(B) intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly

impeded the normal breathing or circulation of the blood of the

trafficked person by applying pressure to the person's throat or

neck or by blocking the person's nose or mouth; or

(C) recruited, enticed, or obtained the

trafficked person from a shelter or facility operating as a

residential treatment center that serves runaway youth, foster

children, the homeless, or persons subjected to human trafficking,

domestic violence, or sexual assault.

Text of subsection as amended by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 452

(H.B. 3554), Sec. 1

(b) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection and

Subsection (b-1), an offense under this section is a felony of the

second degree. An offense under this section is a felony of the

first degree if:

(1) the applicable conduct constitutes an offense

under Subsection (a)(5), (6), (7), or (8), regardless of whether

the actor knows the age of the child at the time of the offense;

(2) the commission of the offense results in the death

of the person who is trafficked; or

(3) the commission of the offense results in the death

of an unborn child of the person who is trafficked.

Text of subsection as amended by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 451

(H.B. 3553), Sec. 2

(b-1) An offense under this section is a felony of the first

degree punishable by imprisonment in the Texas Department of

Criminal Justice for life or for a term of not more than 99 years or

less than 25 years if it is shown on the trial of the offense that

the actor committed the offense in a location that was:

(1) on the premises of or within 1,000 feet of the

premises of:

(A) a school; or

(B) an institution of higher education or private

or independent institution of higher education, as defined by

Section 61.003, Education Code; or

(2) on premises or within 1,000 feet of premises

where:

(A) an official school function was taking place;

or

(B) an event sponsored or sanctioned by the

University Interscholastic League was taking place.

Text of subsection as amended by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 452

(H.B. 3554), Sec. 1

(b-1) An offense under this section is a felony of the first

degree punishable by imprisonment in the Texas Department of

Criminal Justice for life or for a term of not more than 99 years or

less than 25 years if it is shown on the trial of the offense that

the actor committed the offense in a location that was:

(1) on the premises of or within 1,000 feet of the

premises of:

(A) a school;

(B) a juvenile detention facility;

(C) a post-adjudication secure correctional

facility;

(D) a shelter or facility operating as a

residential treatment center that serves runaway youth, foster

children, people who are homeless, or persons subjected to human

trafficking, domestic violence, or sexual assault;

(E) a community center offering youth services

and programs; or

(F) a child-care facility, as defined by Section

42.002, Human Resources Code; or

(2) on premises or within 1,000 feet of premises

where:

(A) an official school function was taking place;

or

(B) an event sponsored or sanctioned by the

University Interscholastic League was taking place.

(c) If conduct constituting an offense under this section

also constitutes an offense under another section of this code, the

actor may be prosecuted under either section or under both

sections.

(d) If the victim of an offense under Subsection (a)(7)(A)

is the same victim as a victim of an offense under Section 21.02, a

defendant may not be convicted of the offense under Section 21.02 in

the same criminal action as the offense under Subsection (a)(7)(A)

unless the offense under Section 21.02:

(1) is charged in the alternative;

(2) occurred outside the period in which the offense

alleged under Subsection (a)(7)(A) was committed; or

(3) is considered by the trier of fact to be a lesser

included offense of the offense alleged under Subsection (a)(7)(A).

SECTION 2. Section 402.034(f), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(f) The strategic plan must include:

(1) an inventory of human trafficking prevention

programs and services in this state that are administered by state

agencies, including an institution of higher education as defined

by Section 61.003, Education Code, or a private college or

university that receives state funds;

(2) regarding the programs and services described by

Subdivision (1):

(A) a report on the number of persons served by

the programs and services; and

(B) a plan to coordinate the programs and

services to achieve the following goals:

(i) eliminate redundancy;

(ii) ensure the agencies' use of best

practices in preventing human trafficking; and

(iii) identify and collect data regarding

the efficacy of the programs and services; and

(iv) focus on interdiction strategies in

the Texas-Mexico Border Region as defined by Section

2056.002(e)(3), Government Code; and

(3) in relation to the goals for programs and services

as described by Subdivision (2)(B), a plan to coordinate the

expenditure of state funds allocated to prevent human trafficking

in this state, including the expenditure of state funds by the human

trafficking prevention task force established under Section

402.035.

(g) Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year,

the council shall submit to the legislature a report detailing the

progress of the strategic plan's implementation. The report must

include:

(1) a description of the level of participation in the

strategic plan by each agency represented on the council and how the

implementation of the strategic plan serves to coordinate the

programs and services described by Subsection (f)(1) and achieve

the goals described by Subsection (f)(2)(B); and

(2) an update of the inventory of programs and

services described by Subsection (f)(1) that further the goals of

the strategic plan.

SECTION 3. Section 402.035(d), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(d) The task force shall:

(1) collaborate, as needed to fulfill the duties of

the task force, with:

(A) United States attorneys' offices for all of

the federal districts of Texas; and

(B) special agents or customs and border

protection officers and border patrol agents of:

(i) the Federal Bureau of Investigation;

(ii) the United States Drug Enforcement

Administration;

(iii) the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,

Firearms and Explosives;

(iv) United States Immigration and Customs

Enforcement; or

(v) the United States Department of

Homeland Security;

(2) collect, organize, and periodically publish

statistical data on the nature and extent of human trafficking in

this state, including:

(A) the number of investigations concerning,

arrests and prosecutions for, and convictions of:

(i) the offense of trafficking of persons;

(ii) the offense of forgery or an offense

under Chapter 43, Penal Code, if the offense was committed as part

of a criminal episode involving the trafficking of persons; and

(iii) an offense punishable as a felony of

the second degree under Section 43.021, Penal Code, regardless of

whether the offense was committed as part of a criminal episode

involving the trafficking of persons;

(B) demographic information on persons who are

convicted of offenses described by Paragraph (A) and persons who

are the victims of those offenses;

(C) geographic routes by which human trafficking

victims are trafficked, including routes by which victims are

trafficked across this state's international border, and

geographic patterns in human trafficking, including the country or

state of origin and the country or state of destination;

(D) means of transportation and methods used by

persons who engage in trafficking to transport their victims; and

(E) social and economic factors that create a

demand for the labor or services that victims of human trafficking

are forced to provide;

(3) solicit cooperation and assistance from state and

local governmental agencies, political subdivisions of the state,

nongovernmental organizations, and other persons, as appropriate,

for the purpose of collecting and organizing statistical data under

Subdivision (2);

(4) work with the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement

to develop and conduct training for law enforcement personnel,

victim service providers, and medical service providers to identify

victims of human trafficking;

(5) work with the Texas Education Agency, the

Department of Family and Protective Services, and the Health and

Human Services Commission to:

(A) develop a list of key indicators that a

person is a victim of human trafficking;

(B) develop a standardized curriculum for

training doctors, nurses, emergency medical services personnel,

teachers, school counselors, school administrators, and personnel

from the Department of Family and Protective Services and the

Health and Human Services Commission to identify and assist victims

of human trafficking;

(C) train doctors, nurses, emergency medical

services personnel, teachers, school counselors, school

administrators, and personnel from the Department of Family and

Protective Services and the Health and Human Services Commission to

identify and assist victims of human trafficking;

(D) develop and conduct training for personnel

from the Department of Family and Protective Services and the

Health and Human Services Commission on methods for identifying

children in foster care who may be at risk of becoming victims of

human trafficking; and

(E) develop a process for referring identified

human trafficking victims and individuals at risk of becoming

victims to appropriate entities for services;

(6) on the request of a judge of a county court, county

court at law, or district court or a county attorney, district

attorney, or criminal district attorney, assist and train the judge

or the judge's staff or the attorney or the attorney's staff in the

recognition and prevention of human trafficking;

(7) examine training protocols related to human

trafficking issues, as developed and implemented by federal, state,

and local law enforcement agencies;

(8) collaborate with state and local governmental

agencies, political subdivisions of the state, and nongovernmental

organizations to implement a media awareness campaign in

communities affected by human trafficking;

(9) develop recommendations on how to strengthen state

and local efforts to prevent human trafficking, protect and assist

human trafficking victims, curb markets and other economic avenues

that facilitate human trafficking and investigate and prosecute

human trafficking offenders , differentiating recommendations for

the Texas-Mexico Border Region as defined by Section

2056.002(e)(3), Government Code, from recommendations for other

parts of the state ;

(10) examine:

(A) the extent to which human trafficking is

associated with the operation of:

(i) sexually oriented businesses, as

defined by Section 243.002, Local Government Code; and

(ii) massage establishments permitting

conduct described by Section 455.202(b)(4), Occupations Code; and

(B) the workplace or public health concerns that

are created by the association of human trafficking and the

operation of sexually oriented businesses and massage

establishments described by Paragraph (A);

(11) develop recommendations for addressing the

demand for forced labor or services or sexual conduct involving

victims of human trafficking, including recommendations for

increased penalties for individuals who engage or attempt to engage

in solicitation of prostitution with victims younger than 18 years

of age; and

(12) identify and report to the governor and

legislature on laws, licensure requirements, or other regulations

that can be passed at the state and local level to curb trafficking

using the Internet and in sexually oriented businesses and massage

establishments.

SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only

to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.

An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is

governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,

and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For

purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the

effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred

before that date.

SECTION 5. This act takes effect September 1, 2025.