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Minutes for SB71 - Committee on Judiciary
Short Title
Increasing the criminal penalties for buying sexual relations, removing provisions regarding city ordinances prohibiting buying sexual relations, requiring certain offenders to complete an educational or treatment program regarding commercial sexual exploitation and requiring the attorney general to approve such programs in consultation with the office of judicial administration.
Minutes Content for Mon, Mar 3, 2025
Chair Humphries opened the Hearing on SB71 at 3:51pm.
Jason Thompson, Office of Revisor of Statutes, gave the bill brief. (Attachment 3)
Proponents:
Mike Kagay, Shawnee Country District Attorney testified that Kansas has been on the 'right' side of laws concerning human trafficking. Current laws focus on the traffickers. Current thinking is that a focus should be more on convicting the traffickers. (Attachment 4)
Ed Klumpp, representing Kansas Sheriffs Association/Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police/Kansas Peace Officers testified the vast majority of the crimes of buying sexual relations are further victimizing persons who are being sexually trafficked. Making the first offense a felony would move these cases out of the Municipal Courts, which are not centralized, into a system that would require the cases to be recorded into the state database, which is centralized. This updated record keeping would be a great advantage to law enforcement.(Attachment 5)
Terry Hund, Program Director of Project 2 Restore, is representing Angela Boles, Founder & Executive Director of Project 2 Restore, who couldn't be here today. She testified that Project 2 Restore represents victims of sex trafficking. She shared brief information about cases of victims in their program. She stressed that victims do not have a choice, but buyers do have a choice. They support making buying a felony offense. (Attachment 6)
Kim Borchers, Private Citizen and board member of Project 2 Restore, shared that the term "sex work" obscures the systemic abuse and coercion inherent in sex trade, and minimizes the gravity of these crimes. SB71 represents an essential first step in what may seem to be the insurmountable challenge of eradicating human trafficking. (Attachment 7)
Sarah Evans-Simpson, Kansas Chapter of the International Association of Forensic Nurses, testified that forensic nurses see and examine victims of sex trafficking on a regular basis. They feel this bill will help decrease the demand of this multi-billion-dollar business. (Attachment 8)
Lucy Bloom, Director of Impact Strategies, Altus Solutions, Inc. testified that several organizations in Kansas that work with victims are in support of SB71. She pointed out that there are successful diversion programs which have been shown to significantly reduce repeat offenses. She shared that similar bills passed in both Texas and Oklahoma have increased the purchasing of sex in southern Kansas. This group supports the necessity of passing this bill, as it would also give an opportunity for offenders to rehabilitate. (Attachment 9)
Emma Markiewicz, Kaw Valley Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, Shawnee Country District Attorney's Office, shared informational statistics gathered in her work on human trafficking in Kansas. (Attachment 10)
Jason Alvis, Chief Executive Officer of ReHope, an organization that provides help for victims of human trafficking. He testified that victims suffer from lifelong trauma, while exploiters receive a "slap on the hand". ReHope is working with other organizations to offer diversion courses for buyers of sex. ReHope's goal is to provide a starting point for restorative justice for perpetrators and victims. (Attachment 11)
The Proponents stood for questions.
The Chair drew attention to the Written Only testimonies:
Proponents:
Matt Bingesser, Administrative Counsel, Office of the Attorney General (Attachment 12)
Sharon Sullivan, Executive Director, International Public Policy Institute (Attachment 13)
Andrea, Private Citizen (Attachment 14)
Cheri Faunce, Chief Executive Officer, Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) Northeast Kansas (Attachment 15)
Chuck Weber, Executive Director, Kansas Catholic Conference (Attachment 16)
Morgan Wood, MoReb Forensic Nurse Consulting (Attachment 17)
10 Undersigned Kansas Citizens, with the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) (Attachment 18)
Neutral:
Emily Brandt, Assistant Appellate Defender, Kansas State Board of Indigents' Defense Services (BIDS) Legislative Committee (Attachment 19)
The Chair closed the hearing on SB71 and adjourned the meeting at 4:41pm.
