Existing law requires the Department of Justice to collect data from specified local law enforcement agencies and to make available on the departments OpenJustice Web portal information relating to criminal statistics. Existing law requires those law enforcement agencies to install and maintain records needed for the correct reporting of statistical data and to report the data to the Attorney General in the manner the Attorney General prescribes.

This bill would require the department to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking as reported through the California Incident-Based Reporting System. Because the bill would require local law enforcement agencies to collect and report additional information to the Attorney General, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law requires the Department of Justice to collect data from specified local law enforcement agencies and to make available on the departments OpenJustice Web portal information relating to criminal statistics. Existing law requires those law enforcement agencies to install and maintain records needed for the correct reporting of statistical data and to report the data to the Attorney General in the manner the Attorney General prescribes.

This bill would require the department to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking as reported through the California Incident-Based Reporting System. Because the bill would require local law enforcement agencies to collect and report additional information to the Attorney General, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law requires the Department of Justice to collect data from specified local law enforcement agencies and to make available on the departments OpenJustice Web portal information relating to criminal statistics. Existing law requires those law enforcement agencies to install and maintain records needed for the correct reporting of statistical data and to report the data to the Attorney General in the manner the Attorney General prescribes.

This bill would require the department to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking. trafficking as reported through the California Incident-Based Reporting System. Because the bill would require local law enforcement agencies to collect and report additional information to the Attorney General, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law requires the Department of Justice to collect data from specified local law enforcement agencies and to make available on the departments OpenJustice Web portal information relating to criminal statistics. Existing law requires those law enforcement agencies to install and maintain records needed for the correct reporting of statistical data and to report the data to the Attorney General in the manner the Attorney General prescribes.

This bill would require the department to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking. Because the bill would require local law enforcement agencies to collect and report additional information to the Attorney General, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law establishes the State Department of Social Services for the administration of public social services, except as specified. Existing law generally provides support services for individuals who are survivors of human trafficking, including public social services, and awards grants to support qualified nonprofit organizations that provide various services to victims of human trafficking.

This bill would require the department to convene a task force comprised of relevant stakeholders to develop best practices to assist current and former victims of human trafficking. The bill would require the department, with input from relevant stakeholders, to discuss and examine different approaches to ensure victims are provided with currently available public services and benefits and identify challenges and gaps that prevent victims from being connected with public services and benefits.

CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS

CSA1 Bill Id:AB 1239

Author:(Dixon)

As Amended Ver:July 7, 2025

Majority vote

SUMMARY

Requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals reported as a victim of human trafficking, as specified, through the California Incident-Based Reporting System.

Senate Amendments

1. Eliminates the definition of "victim," as defined by a provision of the Evidence Code related to the human trafficking caseworker privilege.
2. States a victim of human trafficking, as defined in the Penal Code, means a person reported as a victim of human trafficking in the California Incident-Based Reporting System.

COMMENTS

EXISTING LAW:

States any person who deprives or violates the personal liberty of another with the intent to obtain forced labor or services, is guilty of human trafficking and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for five, eight, or 12 years and a fine of not more $500,000. (Pen. Code, Section 236.1, subd. (a).)

According to the Author

"Human trafficking has no place here or anywhere in our State. The state must take very step to help victims and their families overcome the devastation of human trafficking and partnering with organizations to raise awareness and bring an end to the inhumanity. Even one victim of human trafficking is one too many.

"Despite the positive steps taken by the legislature to tackle human trafficking and provide services to victims of human trafficking, there is currently a significant lack of data on human trafficking within California. The most recent DOJ report on human trafficking was released in 2012. Furthermore, the most recent DOJ Criminal Statistics Reporting Requirements report does not include any reporting requirements for human trafficking or the victims, and the annual Crime in California report by the DOJ has no information on human trafficking.

"To address these issues, and to align the reporting of human trafficking with other crimes, AB 1239 would require that data on arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking be made available on the DOJ's OpenJustice Web portal."

Arguments in Support

According to 3Strands Global Foundation: AB 1239 takes an urgently needed step in strengthening California's response to human trafficking by requiring the Department of Justice to publicly report data on arrests related to human trafficking and the number of identified victims through its OpenJustice Web portal. As a direct service provider, we see firsthand how survivors of trafficking are too often rendered invisible due to fragmented data systems and insufficient public reporting. This lack of transparency undermines our collective ability to allocate resources, evaluate impact, and design policies that meet the real needs of survivors across diverse regions and communities.

"Accurate, publicly accessible data is not only critical to strengthening the state's response—it is also essential for empowering local organizations like ours to strategically expand reintegration support and develop targeted prevention programming. When we understand where trafficking is happening, who it is affecting, and how interventions are progressing, we are better equipped to break the cycles of exploitation.

"We commend [the author's] leadership in introducing AB 1239 and for recognizing that the absence of data is itself a barrier to justice. By aligning human trafficking reporting with standards already in place for crimes such as domestic violence, hate crimes, and homicides, this bill affirms the seriousness of trafficking as a statewide issue and supports survivor-centered policy development.

Arguments in Opposition

None on file.

FISCAL COMMENTS

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:

1. The Department of Justice (DOJ) reports a fiscal impact of $200,000 or less (General Fund). The department notes that implementation of this bill will be dependent upon the appropriation of funds. The DOJ will be unable to absorb the costs to comply with or implement the requirements of the bill within existing budgeted resources. AB 1239, if passed, would require DOJ to include information concerning human trafficking to be made available on the OpenJustice Web portal. DOJ would be responsible for reviewing all files sent from local law enforcement for metadata removal for publication on the portal. To address the increase in workload, the Information Security Branch within DOJ's Office of General Counsel would require one additional Information Technology Specialist I beginning on January 1, 2026 and ongoing. This bill will have an impact on the General Fund.
2. Costs to law enforcement agencies (local funds, General Fund) to collect and report to DOJ information about arrests for human trafficking. Costs for each agency may not be significant for individual agencies, but will likely be significant in the aggregate. Law enforcement agencies may also incur one-time costs to update data collection systems and practices to facilitate collection and reporting of the required data. The state must reimburse these local agencies costs from the General Fund if the Commission on State Mandates determines the duties imposed by this bill constitute a reimbursable state mandate.

VOTES:

ASM PUBLIC SAFETY: 9-0-0

YES: Schultz, Alanis, Mark González, Bonta, Harabedian, Lackey, Nguyen, Ramos, Sharp-Collins

ASM APPROPRIATIONS: 14-0-1

YES: Wicks, Arambula, Calderon, Caloza, Dixon, Elhawary, Fong, Mark González, Hart, Pacheco, Pellerin, Solache, Ta, Tangipa

ABS, ABST OR NV: Sanchez

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0-1

YES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Ahrens, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Ávila Farías, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Caloza, Carrillo, Castillo, Chen, Connolly, Davies, DeMaio, Dixon, Elhawary, Ellis, Flora, Fong, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Jeff Gonzalez, Mark González, Hadwick, Haney, Harabedian, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Kalra, Krell, Lackey, Lowenthal, Macedo, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Patel, Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Ransom, Celeste Rodriguez, Michelle Rodriguez, Rogers, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Schiavo, Schultz, Sharp-Collins, Solache, Soria, Stefani, Ta, Tangipa, Valencia, Wallis, Ward, Wicks, Wilson, Zbur, Rivas

ABS, ABST OR NV: Lee

SENATE FLOOR: 39-0-1

YES: Allen, Alvarado-Gil, Archuleta, Arreguín, Ashby, Becker, Blakespear, Cabaldon, Caballero, Cervantes, Choi, Cortese, Dahle, Durazo, Gonzalez, Grayson, Grove, Hurtado, Jones, Laird, Limón, McGuire, McNerney, Menjivar, Niello, Ochoa Bogh, Padilla, Pérez, Richardson, Rubio, Seyarto, Smallwood-Cuevas, Stern, Strickland, Umberg, Valladares, Wahab, Weber Pierson, Wiener

ABS, ABST OR NV: Reyes

UPDATED

VERSION: July 7, 2025

CONSULTANT: Kimberly Horiuchi / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0001646

 THIRD READING  

Bill No: AB 1239

Author: Dixon (R), et al.

Amended: 7/7/25 in Senate

Vote: 21

SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 6-0, 7/1/25

AYES: Arreguín, Seyarto, Caballero, Gonzalez, Pérez, Wiener

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/29/25

AYES: Caballero, Seyarto, Cabaldon, Dahle, Grayson, Richardson, Wahab

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 6/3/25 - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Human trafficking: data

SOURCE: 3Strands Global

DIGEST:

This bill requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a reported as a victim of human trafficking through the California Incident-Based Reporting System.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. States any person who deprives or violates the personal liberty of another with the intent to obtain forced labor or services, is guilty of human trafficking and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for 5, 8, or 12 years and a fine of not more $500,000. (Penal (Pen.) Code, § 236.1, subd. (a).)
2. Provides any person who deprives or violates the personal liberty of another with the intent to effect or maintain procurement for sex work, pimping, pandering, procurement of a child for prostitution, abduction of a minor for sex work, sale or production of child sexual assault material (CSAM), sexual exploitation of a child, employment of a minor for CSAM, promotion of CSAM, obscene live conduct, or extortion is guilty of human trafficking and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for 8, 14, or 20 years and a fine of not more than $500,000. (Pen. Code, § 236.1, subd. (b).)
3. States any person who causes, induces, or persuades, or attempts to cause, induce, or persuade, a person who is a minor at the time of commission of the offense to engage in a commercial sex act, with the intent to effect or maintain procurement for sex work, pimping, pandering, procurement of a child for prostitution, abduction of a minor for sex work, sale or production of CSAM, sexual exploitation of a child, employment of a minor for CSAM, promotion of CSAM, obscene live conduct, or extortion is guilty of human trafficking, punishable in state prison, as follows:
   1. Five, 8, or 12 years and a fine of not more than $500,000; or,
      
   2. Fifteen years to life and a fine of not more than 500,000 when the offense involves force, fear, fraud, deceit, coercion, violence, duress, menace, or threat of unlawful injury to the victim or to another person. (Pen. Code, § 236.1, subd. (c)(1-2).
4. Requires the information published on the DOJ’s OpenJustice Web portal contain statistics showing all of the following:
   1. The amount and the types of offenses known to the public authorities;
   2. The personal and social characteristics of criminals and delinquents;
   3. The administrative actions taken by law enforcement, judicial, penal, and correctional agencies or institutions, including those in the juvenile justice system, in dealing with criminals or delinquents;
   4. The administrative actions taken by law enforcement, prosecutorial, judicial, penal, and correctional agencies or institutions, including those in the juvenile justice system, in dealing with minors who are the subject of a petition or hearing in the juvenile court to transfer their case to the jurisdiction of an adult criminal court or whose cases are directly filed or otherwise initiated in an adult criminal court; and,
   5. The total number of each of the following:
      1. Civilian complaints received by law enforcement agencies;
      2. Civilian complaints alleging criminal conduct of either a felony or a misdemeanor;
      3. Civilian complaints alleging racial or identity profiling, These statistics shall be disaggregated by the specific type of racial or identity profiling alleged, including, but not limited to, based on a consideration of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or mental or physical disability. (Pen. Code, §§ 13010, subd. (g), 13012, subd. (a)(1-5)(A).)
5. Requires the DOJ to publish an annual report containing statewide statistical information pertaining to crime, as specified. (Pen. Code § 13010.)
6. Requires the annual report published by the DOJ, as specified, commencing with the report that includes data from 2022, to the extent the data is available, include statistics on lewd or lascivious felonies consistent with those reported for rape, including the number of offenses reported and the rate per 100,000 population. (Pen. Code, 13012.7, subd. (a).)

This bill requires the OpenJustice Web portal to include information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been reported as a victim of human trafficking through the California Incident-Based Reporting System.

Background

Current DOJ Information on Human Trafficking. DOJ currently provides information about human trafficking, including national rates of trafficking. Human trafficking includes both labor trafficking and trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation. The existing DOJ website on human trafficking discusses the California law on trafficking and explains the different types of trafficking covered by both state and federal law. According to the DOJ website on human trafficking:

The United States is widely regarded as a destination country for human trafficking. Federal reports have estimated that 14,500 to 17,500 victims are trafficked into the United States annually. This does not include the number of victims who are trafficked within the United States each year. According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, 10,949 cases of human trafficking were reported in the United States in 2018. According to the hotline, California is one of the largest sites of human trafficking in the United States. In 2018, 1,656 cases of human trafficking were reported in California. Of those cases, 1,226 were sex trafficking cases, 151 were labor trafficking cases, 110 involved both labor and sex trafficking, and in 169 cases the type of trafficking was not specified….

California is one of the largest sites of human trafficking in the United States. In 2018, 1,656 cases of human trafficking were reported in California. Of those cases, 1,226 were sex trafficking cases, 151 were labor trafficking cases, 110 involved both labor and sex trafficking, and in 169 cases the type of trafficking was not specified.

(https://oag.ca.gov/human-trafficking/what-is [as of June 6, 2025].) According to information provided to this Committee by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), in its 2024 report on Felony Counts for new admissions, there are 359 incarcerated persons currently serving a principal term of human trafficking with 256 incarcerated persons on a subordinate term.

California Incident-Based Reporting System. In 2016, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Director informed all state Statistical Analysis Centers that the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program would be transitioning to a National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) only data collection by January 1, 2021. (file:///C:/Users/anderscr/Downloads/nibrs-tpr-2016%20(2).pdf [as of August 4, 2025].)

The California Incident Based Reporting System (CIBRS) is the California specific version of NIBRS. (See e.g., https://opendata.sandag.org/stories/s/CIBRS-Landing-Page/bsk4-5xvp/ [as of August 4, 2025].)

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: Yes

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:

• The Department of Justice (DOJ) reports a fiscal impact of $200,000 or less (General Fund). The department notes that implementation of this bill will be dependent upon the appropriation of funds. The DOJ will be unable to absorb the costs to comply with or implement the requirements of the bill within existing budgeted resources. AB 1239, if passed, would require DOJ to include information concerning human trafficking to be made available on the OpenJustice Web portal. DOJ would be responsible for reviewing all files sent from local law enforcement for metadata removal for publication on the portal. To address the increase in workload, the Information Security Branch within DOJ’s Office of General Counsel would require one additional Information Technology Specialist I beginning on January 1, 2026 and ongoing. This bill will have an impact on the General Fund.
  
• Costs to law enforcement agencies (local funds, General Fund) to collect and report to DOJ information about arrests for human trafficking. Costs for each agency may not be significant for individual agencies, but will likely be significant in the aggregate. Law enforcement agencies may also incur one-time costs to update data collection systems and practices to facilitate collection and reporting of the required data. The state must reimburse these local agencies costs from the General Fund if the Commission on State Mandates determines the duties imposed by this bill constitute a reimbursable state mandate.

SUPPORT: (Verified 8/29/25)

3strands Global Foundation (Co-Sponsor)

California Police Chiefs Association

Crime Victims United of California

OPPOSITION: (Verified 8/29/25)

None received

ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT:

According to 3Strands Global Foundation, the co-sponsor of this bill:

AB 1239 takes an urgently needed step in strengthening California’s response to human trafficking by requiring the Department of Justice to publicly report data on arrests related to human trafficking and the number of identified victims through its OpenJustice Web portal.

As a direct service provider, we see firsthand how survivors of trafficking are too often rendered invisible due to fragmented data systems and insufficient public reporting. This lack of transparency undermines our collective ability to allocate resources, evaluate impact, and design policies that meet the real needs of survivors across diverse regions and communities.

Accurate, publicly accessible data is not only critical to strengthening the state’s response—it is also essential for empowering local organizations like ours to strategically expand reintegration support and develop targeted prevention programming. When we understand where trafficking is happening, who it is affecting, and how interventions are progressing, we are better equipped to break the cycles of exploitation.

We commend your leadership in introducing AB 1239 and for recognizing that the absence of data is itself a barrier to justice. By aligning human trafficking reporting with standards already in place for crimes such as domestic violence, hate crimes, and homicides, this bill affirms the seriousness of trafficking as a statewide issue and supports survivor-centered policy development.

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 6/3/25

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Ahrens, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Ávila Farías, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Caloza, Carrillo, Castillo, Chen, Connolly, Davies, DeMaio, Dixon, Elhawary, Ellis, Flora, Fong, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Jeff Gonzalez, Mark González, Hadwick, Haney, Harabedian, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Kalra, Krell, Lackey, Lowenthal, Macedo, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Patel, Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Ransom, Celeste Rodriguez, Michelle Rodriguez, Rogers, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Schiavo, Schultz, Sharp-Collins, Solache, Soria, Stefani, Ta, Tangipa, Valencia, Wallis, Ward, Wicks, Wilson, Zbur, Rivas

NO VOTE RECORDED: Lee

Prepared by: Cheryl Anderson / PUB. S. /

8/31/25 16:54:37

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Senator Anna Caballero, Chair

2025 - 2026 Regular Session

AB 1239 (Dixon) - Human trafficking: data

Bill Summary:

AB 1239 requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to include information concerning arrests for human trafficking on the OpenJustice Web portal.

Fiscal Impact:

• The Department of Justice (DOJ) reports a fiscal impact of $200,000 or less (General Fund). The department notes that implementation of this bill will be dependent upon the appropriation of funds. The DOJ will be unable to absorb the costs to comply with or implement the requirements of the bill within existing budgeted resources. AB 1239, if passed, would require DOJ to include information concerning human trafficking to be made available on the OpenJustice Web portal. DOJ would be responsible for reviewing all files sent from local law enforcement for metadata removal for publication on the portal. To address the increase in workload, the Information Security Branch within DOJ’s Office of General Counsel would require one additional Information Technology Specialist I beginning on January 1, 2026 and ongoing. This bill will have an impact on the General Fund.
  
• Costs to law enforcement agencies (local funds, General Fund) to collect and report to DOJ information about arrests for human trafficking. Costs for each agency may not be significant for individual agencies, but will likely be significant in the aggregate. Law enforcement agencies may also incur one-time costs to update data collection systems and practices to facilitate collection and reporting of the required data. The state must reimburse these local agencies costs from the General Fund if the Commission on State Mandates determines the duties imposed by this bill constitute a reimbursable state mandate.

Background:

Existing law requires DOJ to maintain and annually update its OpenJustice online portal. OpenJustice is a website on which DOJ publishes California criminal justice data and DOJ’s annual reports that analyze the data. On OpenJustice, DOJ publishes information about arrests and arrest disposition (the outcome of an arrest), including the number of arrests for misdemeanors generally, and the number of arrests for certain felonies, including homicide, kidnapping, burglary, and certain drug offenses, among others. Arrest information is reported to DOJ by the law enforcement agencies that make the arrests.

In 2016, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Director informed all state Statistical Analysis Centers that the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program would be transitioning to a National Incident-Based Reporting System only data collection by January 1, 2021. The California DOJ embarked on a five year effort to develop and implement a new state repository, the California Incident-Based Reporting System, to house the new FBI statistical reporting format. The California Incident-Based Reporting System is a combination of the federal requirements with additional California specific data elements. The DOJ began collecting data in the California Incident-Based Reporting System in 2021. The data, starting in 2021, are a combination of both the summary and incident-based reporting formats. There is an established method for converting data into summary data for comparison and trending purposes.

Proposed Law:

Requires the information published on the OpenJustice Web portal to include information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals reported as a victim of human trafficking through the California Incident-Based Reporting System.

-- END --

ASSEMBLY THIRD READING

ATR Bill Id:AB 1239

Author:(Dixon)

As Amended Ver:March 18, 2025

Majority vote

SUMMARY

Requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking.

Major Provisions

COMMENTS

EXISTING LAW:

States any person who deprives or violates the personal liberty of another with the intent to obtain forced labor or services, is guilty of human trafficking and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for 5, 8, or 12 years and a fine of not more $500,000. (Penal Code, Section 236.1, subd. (a).)

According to the Author

"Human trafficking has no place here or anywhere in our State. The state must take very step to help victims and their families overcome the devastation of human trafficking and partnering with organizations to raise awareness and bring an end to the inhumanity. Even one victim of human trafficking is one too many.

"Despite the positive steps taken by the legislature to tackle human trafficking and provide services to victims of human trafficking, there is currently a significant lack of data on human trafficking within California. The most recent DOJ report on human trafficking was released in 2012. Furthermore, the most recent DOJ Criminal Statistics Reporting Requirements report does not include any reporting requirements for human trafficking or the victims, and the annual Crime in California report by the DOJ has no information on human trafficking.

"To address these issues, and to align the reporting of human trafficking with other crimes, AB 1239 would require that data on arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking be made available on the DOJ's OpenJustice Web portal."

Arguments in Support

According to 3Strands Global Foundation: AB 1239 takes an urgently needed step in strengthening California's response to human trafficking by requiring the Department of Justice to publicly report data on arrests related to human trafficking and the number of identified victims through its OpenJustice Web portal. As a direct service provider, we see firsthand how survivors of trafficking are too often rendered invisible due to fragmented data systems and insufficient public reporting. This lack of transparency undermines our collective ability to allocate resources, evaluate impact, and design policies that meet the real needs of survivors across diverse regions and communities.

"Accurate, publicly accessible data is not only critical to strengthening the state's response—it is also essential for empowering local organizations like ours to strategically expand reintegration support and develop targeted prevention programming. When we understand where trafficking is happening, who it is affecting, and how interventions are progressing, we are better equipped to break the cycles of exploitation.

"We commend [the author's] leadership in introducing AB 1239 and for recognizing that the absence of data is itself a barrier to justice. By aligning human trafficking reporting with standards already in place for crimes such as domestic violence, hate crimes, and homicides, this bill affirms the seriousness of trafficking as a statewide issue and supports survivor-centered policy development.

Arguments in Opposition

None on file.

FISCAL COMMENTS

According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee:

1. Costs (General Fund) to DOJ of an unknown but likely significant amount. DOJ may incur one-time costs to update its internal criminal justice databases and add human trafficking arrest and victim data to the OpenJustice portal, with ongoing workload costs to receive, process, and publish human trafficking arrest data. Ongoing costs may be in the tens of thousands of dollars to low hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. As noted below, the source of victim information is not clear, and costs may be much higher if DOJ is required to collect victim information for the purpose of fulfilling its duties under the bill.
2. Costs to law enforcement agencies (LEAs) to collect and report to DOJ information about arrests for human trafficking. Costs for each agency may not be significant for individual agencies, but will likely be significant in the aggregate. LEAs may also incur one-time costs to update data collection systems and practices to facilitate collection and reporting of the required data. The state must reimburse these LEA costs from the General Fund if the Commission on State Mandates determines the duties imposed by this bill constitute a reimbursable state mandate.

VOTES

ASM PUBLIC SAFETY: 9-0-0

YES: Schultz, Alanis, Mark González, Bonta, Harabedian, Lackey, Nguyen, Ramos, Sharp‑Collins

ASM APPROPRIATIONS: 14-0-1

YES: Wicks, Arambula, Calderon, Caloza, Dixon, Elhawary, Fong, Mark González, Hart, Pacheco, Pellerin, Solache, Ta, Tangipa

ABS, ABST OR NV: Sanchez

UPDATED

VERSION: March 18, 2025

CONSULTANT: Kimberly Horiuchi / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0000710

Date of Hearing: May 7, 2025

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Buffy Wicks, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 1239

Author:(Dixon) – As Amended Ver:March 18, 2025

Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: Yes Reimbursable: Yes

SUMMARY:

This bill requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to publish on its OpenJustice online portal annual information about arrests for human trafficking and the number of victims of human trafficking.

The bill defines “victim” as a person who consults a human trafficking caseworker for the purpose of securing advice or assistance concerning a mental, physical, emotional, or other condition related to their experience as a victim of human trafficking.

FISCAL EFFECT:

1. Costs (General Fund) to DOJ of an unknown but likely significant amount. DOJ may incur one-time costs to update its internal criminal justice databases and add human trafficking arrest and victim data to the OpenJustice portal, with ongoing workload costs to receive, process, and publish human trafficking arrest data. Ongoing costs may be in the tens of thousands of dollars to low hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. As noted below, the source of victim information is not clear, and costs may be much higher if DOJ is required to collect victim information for the purpose of fulfilling its duties under the bill.
2. Costs to law enforcement agencies (LEAs) to collect and report to DOJ information about arrests for human trafficking. Costs for each agency may not be significant for individual agencies, but will likely be significant in the aggregate. LEAs may also incur one-time costs to update data collection systems and practices to facilitate collection and reporting of the required data. The state must reimburse these LEA costs from the General Fund if the Commission on State Mandates determines the duties imposed by this bill constitute a reimbursable state mandate.

COMMENTS:

Existing law requires DOJ to maintain and annually update its OpenJustice online portal. OpenJustice is a website on which DOJ publishes California criminal justice data and DOJ’s annual reports that analyze the data. On OpenJustice, DOJ publishes information about arrests and arrest disposition (the outcome of an arrest), including the number of arrests for misdemeanors generally, and the number of arrests for certain felonies, including homicide, kidnapping, burglary, and certain drug offenses, among others. Arrest information is reported to DOJ by the LEAs that make the arrests.

As discussed in more detail in the analysis of this bill by the Assembly Committee on Public Safety, it is not clear how data regarding victims of human trafficking will be collected and reported to DOJ, so costs for this portion of the bill are difficult to assess. The definition of “victim” used in the bill means a person who consults a caseworker who works for a human trafficking victim service organization. If DOJ or LEAs must conduct outreach to these organizations, or otherwise collect information about human trafficking victims through surveys or other mechanisms, costs to implement the bill will be much higher.

Analysis Prepared by: Annika Carlson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing:

Counsel: Kimberly Horiuchi

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY

Nick Schultz, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 1239

Author:(Dixon) – As Amended Ver:March 18, 2025

SUMMARY:

Requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to include in the information made available on the OpenJustice Web portal information concerning arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking.

EXISTING LAW:

1. States any person who deprives or violates the personal liberty of another with the intent to obtain forced labor or services, is guilty of human trafficking and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for 5, 8, or 12 years and a fine of not more $500,000. (Pen. Code, § 236.1, subd. (a).)
   
2. Provides any person who deprives or violates the personal liberty of another with the intent to effect or maintain procurement for sex work, pimping, pandering, procurement of a child for prostitution, abduction of a minor for sex work, sale or production of child sexual assault material (CSAM), sexual exploitation of a child, employment of a minor for CSAM, promotion of CSAM, obscene live conduct, or extortion is guilty of human trafficking and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for 8, 14, or 20 years and a fine of not more than $500,000. (Pen. Code, § 236.1, subd. (b).)
   
3. States any person who causes, induces, or persuades, or attempts to cause, induce, or persuade, a person who is a minor at the time of commission of the offense to engage in a commercial sex act, with the intent to effect or maintain a violation of Section procurement for sex work, pimping, pandering, procurement of a child for prostitution, abduction of a minor for sex work, sale or production ofCSAM, sexual exploitation of a child, employment of a minor for CSAM, promotion of CSAM, obscene live conduct, or extortion is guilty of human trafficking, as follows:
   
   1. Five, 8, or 12 years and a fine of not more than $500,000.
      
   2. Fifteen years to life and a fine of not more than 500,000 when the offense involves force, fear, fraud, deceit, coercion, violence, duress, menace, or threat of unlawful injury to the victim or to another person. (Pen. Code, § 236.1, subd. (c)(1-2).)
      
4. Requires the information published on the OpenJustice Web portal contain statistics showing all of the following:
   
   1. The amount and the types of offenses known to the public authorities.
      
   2. The personal and social characteristics of criminals and delinquents.
      
   3. The administrative actions taken by law enforcement, judicial, penal, and correctional agencies or institutions, including those in the juvenile justice system, in dealing with criminals or delinquents.
      
   4. The administrative actions taken by law enforcement, prosecutorial, judicial, penal, and correctional agencies or institutions, including those in the juvenile justice system, in dealing with minors who are the subject of a petition or hearing in the juvenile court to transfer their case to the jurisdiction of an adult criminal court or whose cases are directly filed or otherwise initiated in an adult criminal court.
      
   5. The total number of each of the following:
      
5. Civilian complaints received by law enforcement agencies.
   
6. Civilian complaints alleging criminal conduct of either a felony or a misdemeanor.
   
7. Civilian complaints alleging racial or identity profiling, These statistics shall be disaggregated by the specific type of racial or identity profiling alleged, including, but not limited to, based on a consideration of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or mental or physical disability. (Pen. Code, § 13012, subd. (a)(1-5)(A).)
8. Mandates the annual report published by the DOJ, as specified, commencing with the report that includes data from 2022, to the extent the data is available, include statistics on lewd or lascivious felonies consistent with those reported for rape, including the number of offenses reported and the rate per 100,000 population. (Pen. Code, 13012.7, subd. (a).)
   
9. Requires the annual report include information concerning arrests for violations of animal cruelty. (Pen. Code, § 13012.8.)

FISCAL EFFECT:

Unknown

COMMENTS:

1. Author's Statement: According to the author, “Human trafficking has no place here or anywhere in our State. The state must take very step to help victims and their families overcome the devastation of human trafficking and partnering with organizations to raise awareness and bring an end to the inhumanity. Even one victim of human trafficking is one too many.

“Despite the positive steps taken by the legislature to tackle human trafficking and provide services to victims of human trafficking, there is currently a significant lack of data on human trafficking within California. The most recent DOJ report on human trafficking was released in 2012. Furthermore, the most recent DOJ Criminal Statistics Reporting Requirements report does not include any reporting requirements for human trafficking or the victims, and the annual Crime in California report by the DOJ has no information on human trafficking.

“To address these issues, and to align the reporting of human trafficking with other crimes, AB 1239 would require that data on arrests for human trafficking and the number of individuals who have been a victim of human trafficking be made available on the DOJ’s OpenJustice Web portal.”

1. Current DOJ Information on Human Trafficking: DOJ currently provides information about human trafficking, including national rates of trafficking. Human trafficking includes both labor trafficking and trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation. The existing DOJ website on human trafficking discusses the California law on trafficking and explains the different types of trafficking covered by both state and federal law.^[1] According to the DOJ website on human trafficking:

The United States is widely regarded as a destination country for human trafficking. Federal reports have estimated that 14,500 to 17,500 victims are trafficked into the United States annually. This does not include the number of victims who are trafficked within the United States each year. According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, 10,949 cases of human trafficking were reported in the United States in 2018. According to the hotline, California is one of the largest sites of human trafficking in the United States. In 2018, 1,656 cases of human trafficking were reported in California. Of those cases, 1,226 were sex trafficking cases, 151 were labor trafficking cases, 110 involved both labor and sex trafficking, and in 169 cases the type of trafficking was not specified.^[2]

California is one of the largest sites of human trafficking in the United States. In 2018, 1,656 cases of human trafficking were reported in California. Of those cases, 1,226 were sex trafficking cases, 151 were labor trafficking cases, 110 involved both labor and sex trafficking, and in 169 cases the type of trafficking was not specified.

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), in its 2024 report on Felony Counts for new admissions, there are approximately 350 inmates currently incarcerated on a principal term of human trafficking with approximately 2,000 incarcerated on a subordinate term.

1. Practical Consideration: This bill requires DOJ to post on its OpenJustice website the number of arrests for human trafficking and the number of victims of human trafficking. Tracking arrests for violations of Penal Code section 236.1 seems relatively straightforward. However, tracking victims will likely be much more challenging. In many instances, victims of trafficking, whether it is labor trafficking or trafficking for purposes of commercial sex exploitation, are too often unlikely to report. According to information provided by the US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, in its one page summary entitled, “The Mindset of a Human Trafficking Victim”:

Victims are taught by their traffickers to distrust outsiders, especially law enforcement. They have a sense of fear and/or distrust toward the government and police because they are afraid they will be deported. Sometimes they feel that it is their fault that they are in this situation. As a coping or survival skill, they may develop loyalties and positive feelings toward their trafficker or may even try to protect them from authorities.

Victims of human trafficking are hesitant to come forward because of their fear of being deported. While many of these victims are women and children who have been beaten and/or raped, their current situation may still be better than where they came from.

Victims come from different social and ethnic backgrounds than the investigating officers. There may be significant cultural differences between the victim and U.S. law enforcement officials.

Victims may be completely unaware of their rights or may have been intentionally misinformed about their rights in this country.

Many victims do not self-identify as victims. They also do not see themselves as people who are homeless or as drug addicts who rely on shelters or assistance. Victims may not appear to need social services because they have a place to live, food to eat, medical care and what they think is a paying job.

The victims may fear not only for their own safety but also for that of their families in their home countries. Some traffickers threaten that they will harm their victims’ families if the victims report their situation to, or cooperate with, law enforcement.^[3]

Information for the OpenJustice portal comes from local law enforcement reporting. Local law enforcement may have a difficult time reporting these statistics since human trafficking is often reported as arrests for sex work or other offenses that are not viewed as human trafficking. In fact, law enforcement often misses signs of human trafficking. According to the National Institute of Justice in 2020, instances of human trafficking far exceed identification by law enforcement.^[4]

In two of the three study sites - jurisdictions with populations of 2.3 million and 600,000, respectively - researchers concluded that human trafficking incidents identified in law enforcement and social service agency records likely represented only a fraction of the actual incidence. The study found that the official trafficking numbers in one jurisdiction represented as little as 14% and at most 18% of the potential total trafficking victims. Looking at law enforcement’s human trafficking records alone, underreporting in those two jurisdictions was even more acute, with no more than 6% of potential human trafficking victims captured in police records in both jurisdictions, the research report noted.^[5]

The NIJ report goes on to identify three reasons for underreporting: Lack of training of law enforcement personnel; the fact that identification of human trafficking victims is often pushed to later stages of criminal justice proceedings; and the fact that the nature of human trafficking crimes often complicates identification.

A common problem for officers is difficulty separating human trafficking from other offenses, such as prostitution, the researchers reported. Where human trafficking offenses were identified, they were often recorded as other offenses on incident reports, in some instances because offense codes for human trafficking do not exist in records systems or incident reports. Specialized investigators were better equipped to identify trafficking offenses, according to the study, but those investigators often hesitated to record a trafficking offense as such. In some instances, specialized investigators said they only coded incidents as trafficking offenses if an individual was arrested and charged with a trafficking offense by a prosecutor. State law enforcement personnel interviewed in one jurisdiction said officers hesitate to report incidents as human trafficking when they involve juvenile victims, because of special victim information reporting requirements. In classifying offenses, officers often defer to the prosecutor. The researchers found that, across studied jurisdictions, officers lacked the ability to identify labor trafficking.^[6]

Before reporting on the rates of trafficking victimization, it makes more sense to increase training, reduce discrimination against marginalized communities, including sex workers, and ensure a greater degree of immigration protection.

1. Argument in Support: According to 3Strands Global Foundation: AB 1239 takes an urgently needed step in strengthening California’s response to human trafficking by requiring the Department of Justice to publicly report data on arrests related to human trafficking and the number of identified victims through its OpenJustice Web portal. As a direct service provider, we see firsthand how survivors of trafficking are too often rendered invisible due to fragmented data systems and insufficient public reporting. This lack of transparency undermines our collective ability to allocate resources, evaluate impact, and design policies that meet the real needs of survivors across diverse regions and communities.

“Accurate, publicly accessible data is not only critical to strengthening the state’s response—it is also essential for empowering local organizations like ours to strategically expand reintegration support and develop targeted prevention programming. When we understand where trafficking is happening, who it is affecting, and how interventions are progressing, we are better equipped to break the cycles of exploitation.

“We commend [the author’s] leadership in introducing AB 1239 and for recognizing that the absence of data is itself a barrier to justice. By aligning human trafficking reporting with standards already in place for crimes such as domestic violence, hate crimes, and homicides, this bill affirms the seriousness of trafficking as a statewide issue and supports survivor-centered policy development.

1. Argument in Opposition: None submitted.
   
2. Prior Legislation:
   
   1. AB 2524 (Irwin), Chapter 418, Statutes of 2016, requires the DOJ to make available to the public its mandatory criminal justice statistics reports through the OpenJustice Web Portal, to be updated at least yearly, and makes conforming changes to existing provisions related to criminal statistics.
      
   2. SB 259 (Nielsen), Chapter 245, Statutes of 2020, requires the DOJ to include disaggregated information on lewd or lascivious felonies in its annual statewide criminal statistics report, as specified.
      

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

3strands Global Foundation
Crime Victims United of California

Opposition

None on file.

Analysis Prepared by:

Kimberly Horiuchi / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744

1. https://oag.ca.gov/human-trafficking/what-is ↑

2. Ibid. ↑

3. https://acf.gov/sites/default/files/documents/orr/understanding_the_mindset_of_a_trafficking_victim_1.pdf ↑

4. https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/gaps-reporting-human-trafficking-incidents-result-significant-undercounting ↑

5. https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/gaps-reporting-human-trafficking-incidents-result-significant-undercounting#many-officers-unable-to-identify-human-trafficking-or-not-inclin ↑

6. Ibid. ↑