Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB279 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	H.B. No. 279
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to the prosecution and punishment of the offense of
6	6	trafficking of persons.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Section 20A.01, Penal Code, is amended by adding
9	9	Subdivision (1-b) to read as follows:
10	10	(1-b) "Disabled individual" has the meaning assigned by
11	11	Section 22.021(b).
12	12	SECTION 2. Sections 20A.02(a) and (b), Penal Code, are
13	13	amended to read as follows:
14	14	(a) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly:
15	15	(1) traffics another person with the intent that the
16	16	trafficked person engage in forced labor or services;
17	17	(2) receives a benefit from participating in a venture
18	18	that involves an activity described by Subdivision (1), including
19	19	by receiving labor or services the person knows are forced labor or
20	20	services;
21	21	(3) traffics another person and, through force, fraud,
22	22	or coercion, causes the trafficked person to engage in conduct
23	23	prohibited by:
24	24	(A) Section 43.02 (Prostitution);
25	25	(B) Section 43.03 (Promotion of Prostitution);
26	26	(B-1) Section 43.031 (Online Promotion of
27	27	Prostitution);
28	28	(C) Section 43.04 (Aggravated Promotion of
29	29	Prostitution);
30	30	(C-1) Section 43.041 (Aggravated Online
31	31	Promotion of Prostitution); or
32	32	(D) Section 43.05 (Compelling Prostitution);
33	33	(4) receives a benefit from participating in a venture
34	34	that involves an activity described by Subdivision (3) or engages
35	35	in sexual conduct with a person trafficked in the manner described
36	36	in Subdivision (3);
37	37	(5) traffics a child with the intent that the
38	38	trafficked child engage in forced labor or services;
39	39	(6) receives a benefit from participating in a venture
40	40	that involves an activity described by Subdivision (5), including
41	41	by receiving labor or services the person knows are forced labor or
42	42	services;
43	43	(7) traffics a child or disabled individual and by any
44	44	means causes the trafficked child or disabled individual to engage
45	45	in, or become the victim of, conduct prohibited by:
46	46	(A) Section 21.02 (Continuous Sexual Abuse of
47	47	Young Child or Disabled Individual);
48	48	(B) Section 21.11 (Indecency with a Child);
49	49	(C) Section 22.011 (Sexual Assault);
50	50	(D) Section 22.021 (Aggravated Sexual Assault);
51	51	(E) Section 43.02 (Prostitution);
52	52	(E-1) Section 43.021 (Solicitation of
53	53	Prostitution);
54	54	(F) Section 43.03 (Promotion of Prostitution);
55	55	(F-1) Section 43.031 (Online Promotion of
56	56	Prostitution);
57	57	(G) Section 43.04 (Aggravated Promotion of
58	58	Prostitution);
59	59	(G-1) Section 43.041 (Aggravated Online
60	60	Promotion of Prostitution);
61	61	(H) Section 43.05 (Compelling Prostitution);
62	62	(I) Section 43.25 (Sexual Performance by a
63	63	Child);
64	64	(J) Section 43.251 (Employment Harmful to
65	65	Children); or
66	66	(K) Section 43.26 (Possession or Promotion of
67	67	Child Pornography); or
68	68	(8) receives a benefit from participating in a venture
69	69	that involves an activity described by Subdivision (7) or engages
70	70	in sexual conduct with a child or disabled individual trafficked in
71	71	the manner described in Subdivision (7).
72	72	(b) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection and
73	73	Subsection (b-1), an offense under this section is a felony of the
74	74	second degree. An offense under this section is a felony of the
75	75	first degree if:
76	76	(1) the applicable conduct constitutes an offense
77	77	under Subsection (a)(5), (6), (7), or (8), regardless of whether
78	78	the actor knows the age of the child or whether the actor knows the
79	79	victim is disabled at the time of the offense;
80	80	(2) the commission of the offense results in the death
81	81	of the person who is trafficked;
82	82	(3) the commission of the offense results in the death
83	83	of an unborn child of the person who is trafficked; or
84	84	(4) the actor recruited, enticed, or obtained the
85	85	victim of the offense from a shelter or facility operating as a
86	86	residential treatment center that serves runaway youth, foster
87	87	children, the homeless, or persons subjected to human trafficking,
88	88	domestic violence, or sexual assault.
89	89	SECTION 3. Section 16.0045(a), Civil Practice and Remedies
90	90	Code, is amended to read as follows:
91	91	(a) A person must bring suit for personal injury not later
92	92	than 30 years after the day the cause of action accrues if the
93	93	injury arises as a result of conduct that violates:
94	94	(1) Section 22.011(a)(2), Penal Code (sexual assault
95	95	of a child);
96	96	(2) Section 22.021(a)(1)(B), Penal Code (aggravated
97	97	sexual assault of a child);
98	98	(3) Section 21.02, Penal Code (continuous sexual abuse
99	99	of young child or disabled individual);
100	100	(4) Section 20A.02(a)(7)(A), (B), (C), (D), or (H) or
101	101	Section 20A.02(a)(8), Penal Code, involving an activity described
102	102	by Section 20A.02(a)(7)(A), (B), (C), (D), or (H) or sexual conduct
103	103	with a child or disabled individual trafficked in the manner
104	104	described by Section 20A.02(a)(7), Penal Code (certain sexual
105	105	trafficking [of a child]);
106	106	(5) Section 43.05(a)(2), Penal Code (compelling
107	107	prostitution by a child); or
108	108	(6) Section 21.11, Penal Code (indecency with a
109	109	child).
110	110	SECTION 4. Section 2(a), Article 38.37, Code of Criminal
111	111	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
112	112	(a) Subsection (b) applies only to the trial of a defendant
113	113	for:
114	114	(1) an offense under any of the following provisions
115	115	of the Penal Code:
116	116	(A) Section 20A.02, if punishable as a felony of
117	117	the first degree under Section 20A.02(b)(1) (Sex Trafficking of a
118	118	Child or Disabled Individual);
119	119	(B) Section 21.02 (Continuous Sexual Abuse of
120	120	Young Child or Disabled Individual);
121	121	(C) Section 21.11 (Indecency With a Child);
122	122	(D) Section 22.011(a)(2) (Sexual Assault of a
123	123	Child);
124	124	(E) Sections 22.021(a)(1)(B) and (2) (Aggravated
125	125	Sexual Assault of a Child);
126	126	(F) Section 33.021 (Online Solicitation of a
127	127	Minor);
128	128	(G) Section 43.25 (Sexual Performance by a
129	129	Child); or
130	130	(H) Section 43.26 (Possession or Promotion of
131	131	Child Pornography), Penal Code; or
132	132	(2) an attempt or conspiracy to commit an offense
133	133	described by Subdivision (1).
134	134	SECTION 5. Section 772.0062(a)(1), Government Code, is
135	135	amended to read as follows:
136	136	(1) "Child sex trafficking" means conduct
137	137	constituting an offense [prohibited] under Section 20A.02(a)(7) or
138	138	(8), Penal Code, that is committed against a child.
139	139	SECTION 6. The change in law made by this Act applies only
140	140	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
141	141	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
142	142	governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
143	143	and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
144	144	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
145	145	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
146	146	before that date.
147	147	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
148	148	______________________________ ______________________________
149	149	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
150	150	I certify that H.B. No. 279 was passed by the House on April
151	151	14, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, 1 present, not
152	152	voting.
153	153	______________________________
154	154	Chief Clerk of the House
155	155	I certify that H.B. No. 279 was passed by the Senate on May
156	156	10, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.
157	157	______________________________
158	158	Secretary of the Senate
159	159	APPROVED: _____________________
160	160	Date
161	161	_____________________
162	162	Governor