What's happening
This bill requires all customer-facing employees of private transportation services in New York to complete human trafficking recognition training.
Why it matters
Expands responsibility for trafficking prevention. By requiring all customer-facing employees of private transportation services to complete training, the bill targets a sector often used by traffickers, aiming to make it harder for trafficking to go unnoticed.
Standardizes training content statewide. The development of a unified training curriculum ensures that employees across different companies and modes of transport (buses, ferries, rail, etc.) receive consistent, thorough information on recognizing and responding to trafficking.
Promotes interagency collaboration. The curriculum and requirements are developed by multiple state agencies—including criminal justice, labor, and social services—leveraging diverse expertise and signaling that trafficking prevention is a multi-faceted, coordinated effort.
Improves access to help for victims. Training includes education about legal definitions, victim identification, and available support services, which could lead to earlier intervention and more survivors being connected with needed aid and recovery options.
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Who cares
Private transportation operators
Private rail, bus, paratransit, charter bus and ferry services would have to require all customer-facing employees to undergo human trafficking recognition training.
Customer-facing transportation employees
Employees who interact or communicate directly with customers would have to complete training covering trafficking recognition, survivor recovery options and available services.
Division of Criminal Justice Services and Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance
The agencies would jointly develop and make available a standardized training program within six months of the bill’s effective date, consulting labor officials and the state’s human trafficking task force.
Human trafficking survivors and victim-service providers
The required training would cover identifying victims and the social and legal services available to them.
Headline styles
Train Employees to Spot Trafficking
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to social services
- Referred to social services
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Train Transit Workers on Trafficking
In Assembly Committee · Social Services · Sponsor Pamela J. Hunter
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
5524
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 6, 2019
Introduced by Sen. BIAGGI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to employee human trafficking recognition training; and relating to authorizing the establishment of a standardized human trafficking recognition training program for private transportation services
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new section 483-gg to read as follows:
§ 483-gg. Human-trafficking recognition training; private transportation services. Any private transportation service, including, but not limited to, rail passenger service, motorbus regular route service, paratransit service, motorbus charter service, and ferry passenger service, shall require all customer-facing employees to undergo a human-trafficking recognition training program established by the division of criminal justice services and the office of temporary and disability assistance in consultation with the department of labor and the New York state interagency task force on human trafficking. For the purposes of this section the term "customer-facing employee" shall mean any employee whose job involves interacting or communicating directly with customers.
§ 2. In consultation with the New York Interagency Task Force on Human Trafficking and the commissioner of labor, the commissioner of the division of criminal justice services and the commissioner of the office of temporary and disability assistance shall together establish a standardized human-trafficking recognition training program for employees of private transportation services. The commissioners may use federal, state, and non-profit organization sources provided that such training program shall address no less than the following issues:
(a) The nature of human trafficking;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11473-01-9
S. 5524 2
(b) How human trafficking is defined in law;
(c) How to identify victims of human trafficking;
(d) Relief and recovery options for survivors; and
(e) Social and legal services available to victims.
The commissioner of the division of criminal justice services and the commissioner of the office of temporary and disability assistance shall complete the human-trafficking recognition training program and make it available for use no more than six months after the effective date of this act.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to employee human trafficking recognition training; and relating to authorizing the establishment of a standardized human trafficking recog- nition training program for private transportation services
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill would necessitate that all public facing employees of private transportation services would be required to complete a human-traffick- ing recognition training program.
Summary of provisions
Section 1: Amends the social services law to include that any private transportation service must require all public facing employees to undergo a human-trafficking recognition training program established by the division of criminal justice services and the office of temporary and disability assistance in consultation with the department of labor and the New York State interagency task force on human trafficking.
Section 2: Provides that the commissioner of labor, the commissioner of the division of criminal justice services and the commissioner of the office of temporary and disability assistance shall together establish a standardized human-trafficking recognition training program for employ- ees of private transportation services in consultation with New York Interagency Task Force on Human Trafficking. Provides issues that the training will include.
Section 3: Establishes the effective date.
Justification
Human trafficking is a hidden crime, and the first step to combating it is to identify victims so they can be rescued and then help bring their perpetrators to justice. Many human traffickers are reliant on mass transportation to move their victims throughout the United States. The U.S. Department of Transportation has recognized this issue and now trains Amtrak employees in recognizing the indications that an individ- ual is being trafficked.
Many traffickers use coercion to ensure their victims do not seek help, necessitating the need for transportation employee training to look for subtle indicators to determine if someone is a trafficking victim. Once a potential victim has been identified, training will equip employees with the knowledge to ask the right questions and understand the coer- cive circumstances that may limit a victim's communication.
To further combat human trafficking, this bill expands the scope of training received by employees of private sector transportation services to include tools to recognize when a person might be a victim of traf- ficking. Expanding this training to private sector transportation compa- nies will raise awareness of human trafficking and subsequently save lives.
Prior legislative history
None.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.