83R4211 GCB-D
By: N. Gonzalez of El Paso H.B. No. 1147
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the collection of information regarding trafficking of
persons.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 402.035, Government Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (b-1) and amending Subsection (d) to read as
follows:
(b-1) A state or local law enforcement agency, district
attorney, or county attorney that assists in the prevention of
human trafficking shall, at the request of the task force,
cooperate and assist the task force in collecting any statistical
data on the nature and extent of human trafficking in the possession
of the law enforcement agency or district or county attorney.
(d) The task force shall:
(1) collaborate, as needed to fulfill the duties of
the task force, with:
(A) United States attorneys for the 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) [the] United States Immigration and
Customs Enforcement [Agency]; 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 data described by Subdivisions (4)(A), (B),
(C), (D), and (E);
(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) ensure that each state or local governmental
agency and political subdivision of the state and each state or
local law enforcement agency, district attorney, or county attorney
that assists in the prevention of human trafficking collects
statistical data related to human trafficking, including, as
appropriate:
(A) the number of investigations concerning,
arrests and prosecutions for, and convictions of:
(i) the offense of trafficking of persons;
and
(ii) the offense of forgery or an offense
under Chapter 43, Penal Code, if 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;
(5) work with the Commission on Law Enforcement
Officer Standards and Education to develop and conduct training for
law enforcement personnel, victim service providers, and medical
service providers to identify victims of human trafficking;
(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, and prosecute human trafficking
offenders; and
(10) examine the extent to which human trafficking is
associated with the operation of sexually oriented businesses, as
defined by Section 243.002, Local Government Code, and the
workplace or public health concerns that are created by the
association of human trafficking and the operation of sexually
oriented businesses.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2013.