Assembly passes tougher penalties, business fines and survivor fund in AB 379 on human trafficking

SACRAMENTO — The California State Assembly on Thursday passed AB 379, a package of changes to the state's anti‑human trafficking laws that increases criminal penalties for adults who solicit minors, raises civil and administrative fines for businesses that enable trafficking, and creates a fund to support survivors.

The measure, introduced on the floor by Assemblymember Schultz and carried by multiple coauthors, passed on a roll call vote of Aye 72, No 0. The bill now proceeds to the Senate.

AB 379 tightens sentencing for solicitation and related conduct. The bill authorizes felony punishment for solicitation of any minor by an adult more than three years older than the minor; a second or subsequent violation is punishable as a felony. It creates a misdemeanor for loitering with intent to purchase commercial sex and requires persons convicted of solicitation who are granted probation to attend a mandatory educational program on human trafficking and child exploitation. "If we can set aside the rhetoric, every child in California deserves protection," Assemblymember Schultz said when he introduced the bill.

The bill also targets businesses that are complicit in trafficking. AB 379 authorizes the California Attorney General to enforce existing requirements that hotels and other establishments post human‑trafficking notices and to pursue civil remedies against establishments that allow trafficking to occur. The legislation raises the penalty range for hotels and similar establishments that intentionally turned a blind eye from the current $1,000–$10,000 to $3,000–$25,000 per violation, increases fines for failing to post mandatory notices (from $500–$1,000 to $1,000–$2,000), and requires an additional $1,000 fine for those convicted of the new loitering offense.

To support victims, AB 379 directs the California Victim Compensation Board to establish a grant program for community‑based organizations that provide direct services and outreach to trafficking survivors; the bill specifies that the fines and fees it increases will deposit into a survivor support fund. It also creates a vertical prosecution grant program, intended to incentivize local district attorneys' offices to assign prosecutors and investigators to specialized trafficking units.

Debate on the floor was broadly supportive of AB 379''but not unanimous about every provision. Assemblymember Sharp Collins, who said she supported stronger protections for 16‑ and 17‑year‑olds, voiced sustained concerns about the bill's loitering provision, calling it vague and warning it could be used to profile and overpolice people of color and people experiencing poverty. "When laws are vague, they are ripe for profiling," Sharp Collins said, citing Los Angeles arrest data she said show disproportionate enforcement. She told colleagues she would not support the bill if the loitering provision remained "underdeveloped" as it moves through the process.

Other members urged passage while committing to further refinement. Assemblymember Avila Farias, a coauthor, said the bill "does not criminalize victims" and that the survivor support fund will direct fines to frontline organizations. Leader Gallagher and others described the measure as a bipartisan, improved product after earlier amendments. "As messy as it was, the process worked," Schultz said in his closing remarks, promising continued work to fine‑tune the provision Sharp Collins flagged.

Assemblymember Crowell, who recounted preparing a survivor to testify in court, emphasized demand reduction and victim services, saying, "There is no such thing as a child prostitute." Several members who spoke said demand is a primary driver of the trafficking industry and argued the bill gives law enforcement additional tools to pursue predators and buyers.

The Assembly clerk recorded the roll call and the measure passed with 72 ayes and no recorded no votes. With the passage, AB 379 will go to the Senate for consideration, and the author pledged to continue working with colleagues and stakeholders on the loitering language and other refinements.

Votes and next steps: AB 379 passed the Assembly 72–0 and will move to the Senate for further consideration. The author and several coauthors said they will continue negotiations there, particularly regarding the loitering provision.