Expands function of Commission on Human Trafficking to include promoting coordinated response by law enforcement to human trafficking.

A206

ASSEMBLY, No. 206

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman DAWN FANTASIA

District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman Flynn and Assemblyman Scharfenberger

SYNOPSIS

���� Expands function of Commission on Human Trafficking
to include promoting coordinated response by law enforcement to human
trafficking.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning the
Commission on Human Trafficking
and amending P.L.2013, c.51.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.� Section 1 of P.L.2013,
c.51 (C.52:17B-237) is amended to read as follows:

���� 1. a. There is hereby created,
in the Division of Criminal Justice in the Department of Law and Public Safety,
a commission to be known as the Commission on Human Trafficking, consisting of
15 members as follows: the Attorney General, or his designee; the Commissioner
of Children and Families, or his designee; the Commissioner of Human Services,
or his designee; a county prosecutor, appointed by the Governor based upon the
recommendation of the County Prosecutors Association of the State of New
Jersey; one member of the New Jersey Human Trafficking Task Force established
within the Department of Law and Public Safety, designated by the Attorney
General; two public members appointed by the Governor based upon the
recommendation of the Senate President, one representing law enforcement and
one representing a victim's assistance organization; one public member
appointed by the Governor based upon the recommendation of the Senate Minority
Leader representing either a non-profit health care facility or mental health
services; two public members appointed by the Governor based upon the
recommendation of the Speaker of the General Assembly, one representing law
enforcement and one representing a victim's assistance organization; one public
member appointed by the Governor based upon the recommendation of the Assembly
Minority Leader representing either a non-profit health care facility or mental
health services; and four public members appointed by the Governor, one of whom
shall be a representative of a child advocacy organization concerning missing,
abducted, or exploited children, and one of whom shall be a human trafficking
survivor.� All public members shall have experience with, possess a background
in, or demonstrate a specialized knowledge of, the legal, policy, educational,
social, or psychological aspects of human trafficking.

���� b. (1)� Of the public members
first appointed:

���� (a)�� the following shall
serve for a term of three years:� one member appointed upon the recommendation
of the Senate President; one member appointed upon the recommendation of the
Speaker of the General Assembly; and two members appointed by the Governor; and

���� (b)� the following shall serve
for a term of two years: one member appointed upon the recommendation of the
Senate President; one member appointed upon the recommendation of the Speaker
of the General Assembly; each member appointed upon the recommendation of the
Senate and Assembly Minority Leaders; and two members appointed by the
Governor.

���� (c)�� Upon the conclusion of
the initial terms, each public member shall be appointed for a term of three
years.

���� (2)� Each member appointed
shall hold office for the term of appointment and until a successor shall have
been appointed and qualified.

���� (3)� Any vacancy in the
membership of the commission shall be filled by appointment in the same manner
as the original appointment was made.

���� c. (1) The commission shall
organize upon the appointment of a majority of its authorized membership.� The
members shall elect one of the members to serve as chair and vice-chair, and
the chair may appoint a secretary, who need not be a member of the commission.

���� (2)� The commission shall meet
at those times and places within the State of New Jersey as the commission
shall determine.� A majority of the commission's authorized membership shall
constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business, for the performance of
any duty, or for the exercise of any power of the commission.

���� d.��� The members of the
commission shall serve without compensation, but shall be eligible for
reimbursement for necessary and reasonable expenses incurred in the performance
of their official duties within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise
made available to the commission for its purposes.

���� e.��� The Division of Criminal
Justice in the Department of Law and Public Safety shall, at the direction of
the Attorney General, provide legal, stenographic, technical, clerical, and
other staff and resource assistance to the commission, and additionally the
commission may incur expenses as may be necessary in order to perform its
duties within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to
it for its purposes.

���� f.���� It shall be the duty of
the commission to:

���� (1)� Evaluate the existing law
concerning human trafficking and the enforcement thereof, and to make
recommendations for legislation, if appropriate;

���� (2)� Review existing victim
assistance programs and analyze the costs, organization, and availability of
these services for victims of human trafficking and to make recommendations for
legislation, if appropriate;

���� (3)� Promote a coordinated
response by
:

����
(a)
�� public and
private resources for victims of human trafficking; and

����
(b)� State and local law
enforcement agencies including, but not limited to, the Attorney General,
county prosecutors, and local police agencies to facilitate human trafficking
investigations and prosecutions; and

���� (4)� Develop mechanisms to
promote public awareness of human trafficking, victim remedies and services,
and trafficking prevention including the creation of a public awareness sign
promoting the national, 24-hour toll-free hotline telephone service on human trafficking
described under section 18 of P.L.2013, c.51 (C.2C:13-11), and the promotion of
training courses and other educational materials for use by persons required
under section 19 of P.L.2013, c.51 (C.2C:13-12) to undergo training on the
handling of and response procedures for suspected human trafficking activities.

���� g.��� The commission shall
report annually to the Governor and to the Legislature, pursuant to section 2
of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), its activities, as well as its findings and
recommendations for any needed new services or resources for victims of human
trafficking, and any proposed changes to the current law concerning human
trafficking.

(cf: P.L.2021, c.3, s.1)

���� 2.� This act shall take effect
immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires the
Commission on Human Trafficking to promote a coordinated response among State
and local law enforcement agencies to facilitate investigations and
prosecutions of human trafficking cases.� The Commission on Human Trafficking
was established by P.L.2013, c.31, and is directed, by the enabling statute,
N.J.S.A.52:17B-237, to evaluate the existing law concerning human trafficking
and the enforcement thereof, and to make recommendations for legislation. The
commission, established in the Division of Criminal Justice in the Department
of Law and Public Safety Human Trafficking Task Force is specifically charged
with reviewing existing victim assistance programs, and promoting a coordinated
response by public and private resources for victims of human trafficking.

���� This bill would expand the
function of the commission to include promoting a coordinated intergovernmental
law enforcement response to human trafficking.� Federal Bureau of Justice
Assistance (BJA) funding may be available for other New Jersey-based task force
coordination efforts, such as coordinating an intergovernmental law enforcement
response to human trafficking as set forth in the bill.

���� It is the sponsor�s view that
a coordinated effort among law enforcement agencies, including qualifying for
federal resources, will strengthen the law enforcement resources available to
combat human trafficking.