BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 2221 Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 2221 (Cristina Garcia and Grove) As Amended August 18, 2016 Majority vote -------------------------------------------------------------------- |ASSEMBLY: |76-0 |(May 19, 2016) |SENATE: |39-0 |(August 23, | | | | | | |2016) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------- Original Committee Reference: PUB. S. SUMMARY: Provides that in a case involving a charge of human trafficking, as specified, a minor who is a victim of the human trafficking shall be provided with assistance from the local county Victim Witness Assistance Center, if the minor so desires. The Senate amendments: 1)Provide assistance to minor victims of human trafficking through a local county Victim Witness Assistance Center, whether or not the minor testifies as a witness in the human trafficking case. 2)Clarify that this bill does not require a local agency to operate a Victim Witness Assistance Center. AB 2221 Page 2 EXISTING LAW: 1)Specifies that a prosecuting witness in a case involving a violation or attempted violation of specified offenses, including human trafficking, shall be entitled, for support, to the attendance of up to two persons of his or her own choosing, one of whom may be a witness, at the preliminary hearing and at the trial, or at a juvenile court proceeding, during the testimony of the prosecuting witness. 2)States that only one of those support persons may accompany the witness to the witness stand, although the other may remain in the courtroom during the witness' testimony. AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBY, this bill: 1)Authorized a peace officer to arrest a person without a warrant if the officer has probable cause to believe that the person has committed the misdemeanor offense of soliciting a minor for prostitution. 2)Specified that prior to being subpoenaed as a witness in a human trafficking case, a minor who is a victim of human trafficking must be provided with assistance from the local county Victim Witness Assistance Center. FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations Committee: 1)Victime-Witness Assistance Council (VWAC) services: Potential increase in expenditures from the Victim-Witness Assistance (VWA) Fund (Special Fund*), Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Fund (Federal Funds), or other state funds (General Fund) for local AB 2221 Page 3 agencies that operate VWACs and accept VWA funds to provide "assistance" to minors. There are currently 59 VWACs in the state, all of which receive funding from the VWA Fund to provide assistance to victims. By requiring VWACs to provide assistance to human trafficking victims, this measure could result in potentially significant one-time and ongoing costs to meet the requirements of this bill. In the absence of additional funding, the mandate to provide assistance to these specific victims potentially redirects funding for services that otherwise would be provided to victims of other crimes, including domestic violence and sexual assault. 2)Cal OES: No anticipated impact, as no changes to the administration of the local VWAC programs are required by the bill. *Victim-Witness Assistance (VWA) Fund - staff notes the VWA Fund is insolvent, with a projected Fiscal Year (FY) 2016-17 year-end balance of $49,000. In order to address the VWA Fund's operating shortfall, one of the state's short-term solutions has been to shift costs to other state funds such as the Restitution Fund. COMMENTS: According to the author, "AB 2221 would allow law enforcement the authority to arrest any adult when there is probable cause to believe they solicited sex from a minor. Currently, law enforcement officials can only arrest an adult for soliciting sex from a minor if they witness the solicitation. If police come upon a situation where there is probable cause to believe an adult has solicited a minor for sex, an officer can only issue a ticket, because this is a misdemeanor crime." Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion of this bill. Analysis Prepared by: AB 2221 Page 4 David Billingsley / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0004873