Public hearing on HB 5,014: wide testimony urging funding for DOJ programs from victim services to organized crime and community violence intervention

The Joint Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Public Safety held a public hearing on House Bill 5,014 on April 17, 2025, with dozens of witnesses urging support for specific Department of Justice budget requests and related bills. Testimony focused on expanding in-house legal capacity, funding victim services and children's advocacy centers, supporting an organized-crime initiative by the attorney general, and investing in community violence intervention.

"I'm here to support House Bill 5,014," Nathan Vasquez, Multnomah County district attorney, told the committee. Vasquez said he supports Attorney General Rayfield's organized-crime proposal because complex investigations into human trafficking, organized retail theft and stolen-goods trafficking require coordinated state and local resources.

Detective Timothy Larson of the Portland Police Bureau's human trafficking unit described his unit's small size and the resource intensity of trafficking investigations, saying the work "takes resources" and that added state support would improve prosecutions and victim services. Larson told the committee that trafficking…