Bill Sponsors
Senator Matthew L. LaMountain
Committee
Senate Finance
Summary
Select
This legislation mandates that public transportation agencies display signs containing the state and national human trafficking resource center hotline information at all stations, rest areas, and welcome centers. Additionally, it requires specific employers—including strip clubs, job-recruitment centers, hospitals, and emergency-care providers—to display these signs in locations visible to both employees and the public. The Department of Labor and Training is authorized to impose a $300 fine on employers who knowingly fail to comply. Collected fines are deposited into the violent crimes indemnity account to assist crime victims.
Sponsor
Analysis
Pros for Progressives
- Increases the visibility of critical support resources for victims of human trafficking in high-traffic and high-risk areas, potentially facilitating more rescues and interventions.
- Directs funds collected from non-compliance fines into the violent crimes indemnity account, ensuring that financial penalties directly support the recovery and restitution of crime victims.
- Establishes accountability for industries often adjacent to exploitation, such as sexually oriented businesses and labor recruitment centers, by mandating they provide safety information to workers.
Cons for Progressives
- The three hundred dollar fine may be considered too low to act as a meaningful deterrent for larger businesses or institutions that choose to ignore the mandate.
- By limiting penalties to "knowing" failure to comply, the bill creates a potential loophole where employers can claim ignorance to avoid accountability.
- Designating the fine as the "exclusive remedy" prevents the state or advocates from seeking further legal action or stronger penalties against repeat offenders who consistently neglect safety standards.
Pros for Conservatives
- Supports law and order by targeting human trafficking and aiding in the identification of criminal activity without creating a new tax-funded bureaucracy.
- Generates revenue for victim compensation through fines on violators rather than increasing taxes on law-abiding citizens.
- Targets regulations specifically toward high-risk industries and public transportation rather than imposing a broad, burdensome mandate on all small businesses in the state.
Cons for Conservatives
- Imposes government mandates on private businesses, forcing them to display government-approved speech and signage within their own establishments.
- Expands the regulatory authority of the Department of Labor and Training to inspect private premises and levy fines against business owners.
- Represents a slippery slope of government intrusion where private entities like hospitals and recruitment centers are conscripted to act as distribution points for state social service information.
Constitutional Concerns
The bill mandates private entities display government-prescribed messaging, raising potential First Amendment "compelled speech" concerns. However, courts generally permit required disclosures that are factual, uncontroversial, and related to public safety or commercial regulation. Since the signs provide hotline numbers for a severe crime rather than ideological messaging, it likely passes constitutional muster, though the specific targeting of certain business types could theoretically be challenged.
Impact Overview
Groups Affected
- Public transportation agencies
- Strip clubs and sexually-oriented businesses
- Job-recruitment centers
- Hospitals
- Emergency-care providers
Towns Affected
All
Cost to Taxpayers
None
Revenue Generated
$300/violation
BillBuddy Impact Ratings
Importance
Measures population affected and overall level of impact.
Freedom Impact
Level of individual freedom impacted by the bill.
Public Services
How much the bill is likely to impact one or more public services.
Regulatory
Estimated regulatory burden imposed on the subject(s) of the bill.
Clarity of Bill Language
How clear the language of the bill is. Higher ambiguity equals a lower score.
Enforcement Provisions
Measures enforcement provisions and penalties for non-compliance (if applicable).
Environmental Impact
Impact the bill will have on the environment, positive or negative.
Privacy Impact
Impact the bill is likely to have on the privacy of individuals.
Bill Status
Current Status
Held
Comm Passed
Floor Passed
Law
History
• 01/16/2026 Introduced, referred to Senate Finance
Bill Text
SECTION 1. Section 11-67.1-20 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-67.1 entitled "Uniform Act on Prevention of and Remedies for Human Trafficking" is hereby amended to read as follows:
11-67.1-20. Display of public-awareness sign — Penalty for failure to display.
(a) Any public or quasi-public transportation agency shall display a public-awareness sign that contains the state and national human trafficking resource center hotline information in every transportation station, rest area, and welcome center in the state that is open to the public.
(b) An employer shall display the public-awareness sign described in subsection (a) of this section in a place that is clearly conspicuous and visible to employees and the public at each of the following locations in this state at which the employer has employees:
(1) A strip club or other sexually-oriented business;
(2) A business entity previously found to be a nuisance for prostitution;
(3) A job-recruitment center;
(4) A hospital; or
(5) An emergency-care provider.
(c) The department of labor and training shall impose a fine of three hundred dollars ($300) per violation on an employer that knowingly fails to comply with subsection (b) of this section. The fine shall be the exclusive remedy for failure to comply.
(d) All monies assessed pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the violent crimes indemnity account within the general fund, as established pursuant to § 12-25-28, for the purpose of paying awards granted pursuant to the criminal injuries compensation act established pursuant to the provisions of chapter 25 of title 12.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
11-67.1-20. Display of public-awareness sign — Penalty for failure to display.
(a) Any public or quasi-public transportation agency shall display a public-awareness sign that contains the state and national human trafficking resource center hotline information in every transportation station, rest area, and welcome center in the state that is open to the public.
(b) An employer shall display the public-awareness sign described in subsection (a) of this section in a place that is clearly conspicuous and visible to employees and the public at each of the following locations in this state at which the employer has employees:
(1) A strip club or other sexually-oriented business;
(2) A business entity previously found to be a nuisance for prostitution;
(3) A job-recruitment center;
(4) A hospital; or
(5) An emergency-care provider.
(c) The department of labor and training shall impose a fine of three hundred dollars ($300) per violation on an employer that knowingly fails to comply with subsection (b) of this section. The fine shall be the exclusive remedy for failure to comply.
(d) All monies assessed pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the violent crimes indemnity account within the general fund, as established pursuant to § 12-25-28, for the purpose of paying awards granted pursuant to the criminal injuries compensation act established pursuant to the provisions of chapter 25 of title 12.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.