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2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
2023 ASSEMBLY BILL 979
January 19, 2024 - Introduced by Representatives O'CONNOR, EMERSON, MAXEY,
PLUMER, GUNDRUM, CONLEY, MURSAU, CALLAHAN, JOERS, DITTRICH, C.
ANDERSON, SINICKI, CONSIDINE, STUBBS, BALDEH, PALMERI, SUBECK, EDMING,
BARE, BEHNKE, BILLINGS, MELOTIK, SCHRAA, HURD, SHANKLAND and OHNSTAD,
cosponsored by Senators TAYLOR, WIRCH, CARPENTER and SPREITZER. Referred
to Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety.
***AUTHORS SUBJECT TO CHANGE***
AN ACT to create 20.455 (5) (dm) and 165.925 of the statutes; relating to: a
human trafficking victim services grant program, granting rule-making
authority, and making an appropriation.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill establishes a grant program, administered by the Department of
Justice, that provides grants to nonprofit organizations to provide support services
to trafficking victims. The bill defines “support services” to mean any combination
of direct victim advocacy, safety planning, housing, substance use disorder
treatment, medical and behavioral health, job training, and employment support
services. Under the bill, to be eligible for a grant, a nonprofit organization must
submit an application that that describes the organization's efforts to coordinate
with local law enforcement agencies and includes a proposed plan for expenditure
of the grant moneys, and the nonprofit organization must provide private matching
funds that are equal to at least 50 percent of the grant amount. The bill provides
$2,500,000 biennially for such grants.
For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as
an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
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SECTION 1 ASSEMBLY BILL 979
SECTION 1. 20.005 (3) (schedule) of the statutes: at the appropriate place, insert
the following amounts for the purposes indicated:
2023-24 2024-25
20.455 Justice, department of
(5) VICTIMS AND WITNESSES
(dm) Trafficking victim services grant
program GPR B 1,250,000 1,250,000
SECTION 2. 20.455 (5) (dm) of the statutes is created to read:
20.455 (5) (dm) Trafficking victim services grant program. Biennially, the
amounts in the schedule to provide grants to nonprofit organizations under s.
165.925.
SECTION 3. 165.925 of the statutes is created to read:
165.925 Trafficking victim services grant program. (1) In this section:
(a) “Nonprofit organization" means an organization described in section 501 (c)
(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and that is exempt from federal income tax under
section 501 (a) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(b) “Support services” means any combination of direct victim advocacy, safety
planning, housing, substance use disorder treatment, medical and behavioral
health, job training, and employment support services.
(c) “Trafficking victim” means a person who was a victim of trafficking for the
purposes of a commercial sex act, as defined in s. 940.302 (1) (a), under s. 940.302 or
948.051 or under 22 USC 7101 to 7112.
(2) From the appropriation under s. 20.455 (5) (dm), the department of justice
shall award grants to nonprofit organizations to provide support services to
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SECTION 3
ASSEMBLY BILL 979
trafficking victims. To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, a nonprofit
organization shall do all of the following:
(a) Submit an application for a grant to the department of justice that describes
the organization's efforts to coordinate with local law enforcement agencies and
includes a proposed plan for expenditure of the grant moneys.
(b) Provide matching funds that are equal to at least 50 percent of the grant
amount awarded under this subsection and that come from private funding sources.
(3) The department of justice may award grants under sub. (2) in the following
amounts:
(a) To a nonprofit organization that provides among its services housing
services, up to $125,000 per fiscal biennium.
(b) To a nonprofit organization that provides only support services other than
housing services, up to $50,000 per fiscal biennium.
(4) (a) In awarding grants under sub. (2), the department of justice shall give
preference to grant applicants that have a well-established relationship with local
law enforcement agencies and to grant applicants that are capable of providing
licensed services with licensed in-house staff or under a contract with a 3rd-party
provider that oversees provision of licensed services.
(b) In awarding grants under sub. (2) to nonprofit organizations that provide
housing services, the department of justice shall give preference to grant applicants
that have the ability to provide services to the greatest number of trafficking victims.
(5) The department of justice shall promulgate rules for the administration of
this section and the distribution of grants under this section, including developing
additional criteria on which grant awards may be based.
(END)
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