Conference committee reviews amendments to House Bill 1308 to strengthen Human Trafficking Commission, add education duties and membership

The conference committee on House Bill 1308 met to consider amendments that would change the Human Trafficking Commission's membership, clarify appointment authority, designate the attorney general (or the attorney general's designee) as the commission's presiding officer, and add an annual prevention-and-awareness education duty for students. Senator Bauschay presented the amendments and said the changes were intended to give the commission more independence and to "keep the commission itself moving forward," while preserving flexibility about which organizations the attorney general can draw on.

The amendments in the circulated draft (version 0.01003) would add specific, named seats or spokespeople to the commission: legislators; a representative from Children and Family Services within the Department of Human Services; two school representatives (one from a rural district and one from a larger district); a representative of the State's Attorneys Association; and a representative from the governor's office. The draft also replaces permissive language in the bill that would allow continuing-education credits to count toward license requirements with clarifying appointment provisions recommended by legislative counsel.

On duties, the draft adds a requirement that the commission provide annual prevention and awareness education on human trafficking and exploitation for students. The circulated text specifically referenced instruction for students in grades 6 and 10 in tribal public and nonpublic schools; Senator Bauschay suggested, however, cross-referencing the Department of Public Instruction curriculum statute (cited in the meeting as "15.1-9") so that any future adjustments to curriculum standards would not force repeated statutory changes. Bauschay also said conferees are coordinating with other bills, including a related Senate measure, to avoid conflicts.

Amy Boyd Bomi, anti-trafficking program manager at the nonprofit YouthWorks, testified at the microphone that the existing Human Trafficking Task Force and the Attorney General's Human Trafficking Commission have different structures and funding. She said the task force is primarily funded by the federal Office for Victims of Crime and is not a separate legal entity or a 501(c)(3). YouthWorks, she said, participates in both the task force and the commission. "You cannot address trafficking of children without North Dakota's Department of Health and Human Services Children and Families Division at the table," she said, arguing that the department's permanent presence would strengthen mandated child-protection responses.

Boyd Bomi said her agency's caseloads show large disparities by region: in Bismarck she estimated "roughly 70 to 80%" of youth served are Native American and said state-wide her experience is that indigenous youth represent "at least 45%" of trafficking cases, an overrepresentation relative to population. She urged tribal participation in the commission and named the First Nations Women's Alliance as an important partner.

Representative Davis and other conferees discussed tribal representation. Davis proposed allowing the tribal chairs to designate a single representative who would report back to the tribal chairs, so the commission would gain tribal input without creating an unworkably large committee. Senator Waban and others raised concerns about quorum and the committee becoming "untenable" if membership expands too much.

No formal motion or roll-call vote was recorded during the meeting. Committee members agreed to stand at ease while Representative Davis drafted proposed language to add tribal representation; the committee then agreed to schedule another meeting and reconvene. The committee adjourned without adopting the amendments in the circulated draft.

The discussion made clear that the bill's final language remains subject to negotiation with other pending legislation and with the attorney general's office and education stakeholders. Staff and conferees signaled they expect to return with revised language and potentially a subsequent meeting to finalize the conference report.