House File 129 would send child-trafficking report to public safety and health committees

Chair Backer moved to place House File 129 on the general register, and the committee approved the motion by voice vote.

Representative Nathan Repinski, sponsor of House File 129, told the Health Finance and Policy Committee the bill makes a small procedural change to existing reporting for the Safe Harbor Program: it would require the biannual report the Director of Trafficking Prevention already submits to the Commissioner of Health to also be provided to the House and Senate public safety and health committees. "Protecting children from human trafficking is important to all of us," Repinski said. "I ask for your support on this. It is a bipartisan issue."

Members asked whether the information is already accessible without the bill. Representative Leaming said he believed the reports were available even when not formally distributed to committees and asked whether the sponsor expected a substantive change. Repinski replied that the intention was to make the materials "more readily available" by having them emailed to committee members rather than requiring members to search for them.

There was no public testimony for or against the bill at the hearing. After discussion, Chair Backer renewed the motion and the committee voted by voice to place House File 129 on the general register.

The action leaves the underlying reporting requirement in place and does not change the report's content or schedule; it only adds legislative committee recipients, according to the sponsor's presentation.