The bill would amend the Texas Government Code relating to the requirement that certain entities post human trafficking signs; providing a civil penalty.
The bill would require that a variety of different entities, including cosmetology facilities, hospitals, hotels, massage establishments, sexually oriented businesses, transportation hubs, state parks, and other recreational sites, to post informative human trafficking signage in conspicuous areas and public restrooms.
The bill would require that the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), in collaboration with the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), must prescribe by rule the design and content of the signs. The bill would require that signs contain the toll-free phone number and website of the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, indicators that a person is a victim of human trafficking, and information regarding services and assistance available to victims of human trafficking in English, Spanish and any other languages that are determined to be appropriate by the OAG and HHSC.
The bill would require the OAG to produce the signs and make the required number of signs necessary to comply with the section available to every person required to post the sign, and requires the OAG and HHSC to share equally the cost to produce the signs. The bill would require the OAG to disseminate the signs at no cost to each person required to post.
Violators of the specified provisions would be given a warning by the OAG for a first time violation and then would be assessed a $200 fine for each subsequent violation.
This analysis assumes that any additional work resulting from the provisions of the bill could be absorbed within current resources.
According to the Comptroller's Office, the fiscal impact of the bill cannot be determined as the number of cases of noncompliance that would result in penalty revenue is unknown.
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.