H.B. No. 188

	AN ACT
	relating to the composition, duties, and continuation of the human
	trafficking prevention task force.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Sections 402.035(c), (d), and (h), Government
	Code, are amended to read as follows:
	(c)  The task force is composed of the following:
	(1)  the governor or the governor's designee;
	(2)  the attorney general or the attorney general's
	designee;
	(3)  the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
	Services Commission or the executive commissioner's designee;
	(4)  the commissioner of the Department of Family and
	Protective Services or the commissioner's designee;
	(5)  the commissioner of the Department of State Health
	Services or the commissioner's designee;
	(6)  the public safety director of the Department of
	Public Safety or the director's designee;
	(7)  one representative from each of the following
	state agencies, appointed by the chief administrative officer of
	the respective agency:
	(A)  the Texas Workforce Commission;
	(B)  the Texas Department of Criminal Justice;
	(C)  the Texas Juvenile Justice Department [Youth
	Commission;
	[(D)  the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission];
	and
	(D) [(E)]  the Texas Alcoholic Beverage
	Commission; and
	(8)  as appointed by the attorney general:
	(A)  a chief public defender employed by a public
	defender's office, as defined by Article 26.044(a), Code of
	Criminal Procedure, or an attorney designated by the chief public
	defender;
	(B)  an attorney representing the state;
	(C)  a representative of:
	(i)  a hotel and motel association;
	(ii)  a district and county attorneys
	association; [and]
	(iii)  a state police association; and
	(iv)  a statewide medical association;
	(D)  representatives of sheriff's departments;
	(E)  representatives of local law enforcement
	agencies affected by human trafficking; and
	(F)  representatives of nongovernmental entities
	making comprehensive efforts to combat human trafficking by:
	(i)  identifying human trafficking victims;
	(ii)  providing legal or other services to
	human trafficking victims;
	(iii)  participating in community outreach
	or public awareness efforts regarding human trafficking;
	(iv)  providing or developing training
	regarding the prevention of human trafficking; or
	(v)  engaging in other activities designed
	to prevent human trafficking.
	(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)  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 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 the offense was committed as part
	of a criminal episode involving the trafficking of persons; and
	(iii)  an offense punishable under Section
	43.02(c)(3), 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;
	(5)  work with the Texas 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)  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;
	(7)  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;
	(8)  examine training protocols related to human
	trafficking issues, as developed and implemented by federal, state,
	and local law enforcement agencies;
	(9)  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;
	(10)  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]
	(11)  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; and
	(12)  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 prostitution with victims younger than 18 years of age.
	(h)  This section expires September 1, 2017 [2015].
	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, 2015.
	______________________________	______________________________
	President of the Senate	Speaker of the House
	I certify that H.B. No. 188 was passed by the House on April
	16, 2015, by the following vote:  Yeas 146, Nays 0, 2 present, not
	voting.
	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House
	I certify that H.B. No. 188 was passed by the Senate on May
	15, 2015, by the following vote:  Yeas 31, Nays 0.
	______________________________
	Secretary of the Senate
	APPROVED:  _____________________
	Date
	_____________________
	Governor