STAND. COM. REP. NO. 577

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 235

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 235 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HUMAN TRAFFICKING,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require the Department of the Attorney General to:

(1) Develop and implement a Human Trafficking Prevention Program to prevent human trafficking and provide increased support and assistance to victims of human trafficking and victims of the commercial sexual exploitation of children;

(2) Submit a report to the Legislature before the Regular Session of 2024 on the State's efforts to address the commercial sexual exploitation of children; and

(3) Submit a report to the Legislature before the Regular Session of 2025 on the State's efforts to address human trafficking.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Human Services, Hawai‘i State Commission on the status of women, Zonta Club of Hilo, Catholic Charities Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i Women Lawyers, Imua Alliance, and three individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of the Attorney General.

Your Committee finds that children, particularly those who are at-risk for mental illnesses and substance abuse issues, are vulnerable to sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. Additionally, the Department of Human Services has been receiving an increasing number of hotline calls involving witnesses or victims of child sex trafficking; however, due to the covert nature of child sex trafficking and the reluctance of exploited youth to identify themselves as victims, it is difficult to accurately measure the scope of the problem. To adequately serve children who have been sexually exploited, your Committee believes that a statewide human trafficking program is needed to develop and utilize comprehensive interagency case management strategies, protocols, and a multi-disciplinary response that is both victim-centered and offender-focused.

Your Committee notes that the Department of the Attorney General currently has an established Human Trafficking Abatement Section and participates with law enforcement agencies, governmental departments, and community service providers to combat human trafficking. Accordingly, this measure will support the Department of the Attorney General's efforts and ensure the continuity of its critical work in these areas.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Clarifying that the Department of the Attorney General shall implement strategies to address accountability for child enticement, commercial sexual exploitation, pimping, and human trafficking through law enforcement efforts, prosecutions, and crime prevention efforts;

(2) Inserting an effective date of December 31, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

(3) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health and Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 235, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 235, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committees on Judiciary and Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health and Human Services,

________________________________

JOY A. SAN BUENAVENTURA, Chair