C.S.H.B. 869 78(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


C.S.H.B. 869
By: Burnam
Criminal Jurisprudence
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Over the past decade, trafficking in persons has reached epidemic
proportions.  People are recruited and smuggled into the U.S. and then
forced into sexual slavery or some other form of coerced labor. The U.S.
government predicts that 50,000 persons are trafficked and then enslaved
in the U.S. each year.   

C.S.H.B. 869 establishes human trafficking as a state crime  and mirrors
the recent federal statutes which define human trafficking as a  crime. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any
additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or
institution. 

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 869 amends the Penal Code to establish human trafficking as a
state crime. This bill defines "traffic" to mean transporting a person or
enticing, recruiting, harboring, providing or otherwise obtaining a person
for transport by deception, coercion, or force.  Trafficking of persons is
a second degree felony offense if the person knowingly traffics another
person for labor or services or to engage in conduct covered by the public
indecency statutes. An offense is a first degree felony if the trafficked
person is under 14 years of age while engaging in public indecency
offenses or if the commission of the offense results in the death of the
person who is trafficked. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2003.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

The substitute modifies the original bill to eliminate the condition that
in order to qualify for trafficking, the transporting of a person must be
to an unfamiliar place. Furthermore, the substitute removed the provision
that enabled victims of human trafficking to qualify for crime victims
funds under the Crime Victims Compensation Act.