(1) The University of South Florida Trafficking in Persons – Risk to Resilience Lab shall house and operate the state’s unified Statewide Data Repository for Anonymous Human Trafficking Data.

(a) The purposes of the data repository are to:

1. Collect and analyze anonymous human trafficking data to better understand the magnitude and trends in human trafficking in the state over time.
2. Help evaluate the effectiveness of various state-funded initiatives to combat human trafficking to determine the impact of such initiatives and to use evidence-based decisionmaking in the determination of state investments in such initiatives.
3. Inform statewide efforts among law enforcement agencies, state agencies, and other entities to combat human trafficking and apprehend and prosecute those persons responsible for human trafficking; and
4. Better serve victims of human trafficking through evidence-based interventions that have proven effective.

Terms Used In Florida Statutes 1004.343

  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
(b) University of South Florida faculty and staff assigned to the lab shall:

1. Design, operate, maintain, and protect the integrity of the statewide human trafficking data repository.
2. Design, in consultation with the Department of Law Enforcement and other law enforcement partners, and launch a user-friendly system for uploading anonymous human trafficking data to the repository in a manner that can be accomplished quickly and at no additional cost to the required reporting entities.
3. Analyze such data to identify initiatives and interventions that worked best in combating human trafficking, prosecuting individuals conducting human trafficking, and assisting victims of human trafficking.
4. Work with law enforcement agencies and state agencies to report data on human trafficking investigations and prosecutions which can aid those agencies in combating human trafficking and prosecuting those individuals responsible for human trafficking.
(2)(a) The following agencies and organizations are considered required reporting entities under this section:

1. Law enforcement agencies operating with state or local government tax proceeds, including, but not limited to, municipal police departments, county sheriff’s departments, county attorney’s offices, and state attorney’s offices.
2. The Department of Law Enforcement and any other state agencies that hold any data related to human trafficking.
3. Service providers and other nongovernmental organizations that serve victims of human trafficking through state or federal funding for such purpose.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), any required reporting entity that submits the data required under subsection (3) from its local jurisdiction to the Department of Law Enforcement’s Uniform Crime Report (UCR) system or Florida Incident-Based Reporting System (FIBRS) may, but is not required to, submit any additional data to the statewide human trafficking data repository. However, the Department of Law Enforcement shall upload or otherwise share with the statewide human trafficking data repository, at least quarterly, the relevant data required by this section which has been reported by local jurisdictions to the UCR system and the FIBRS.
(3) All of the following human trafficking data shall be submitted by required reporting entities to the statewide human trafficking data repository, unless such entity is exempt from the reporting under paragraph (2)(b):

(a) The alleged offense that was being investigated or prosecuted and a description of the alleged prohibited conduct.
(b) The age, gender, and race or ethnicity of each suspect and victim and the case number associated with that suspect and victim.
(c) The date, time, and location of the alleged offense.
(d) The type of human trafficking involved.
(e) Any other related prosecution charges.
(f) Information regarding any victim services organization or program to which the victim was referred, if available.
(g) The disposition of the investigation or prosecution, regardless of its manner of disposition.
(4)(a) A required reporting entity located in a county with a population of more than 500,000 must begin reporting its jurisdiction’s human trafficking data required by this section to the statewide human trafficking data repository, or to the UCR system or the FIBRS, on or before July 1, 2024, and at least quarterly each year thereafter.
(b) A required reporting entity located in a county with a population of 500,000 or less must begin reporting its jurisdiction’s human trafficking data required by this section to the statewide human trafficking data repository, or to the UCR system or the FIBRS, on or before July 1, 2024, and at least biannually each year thereafter.
(5) Beginning July 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, the University of South Florida Trafficking in Persons – Risk to Resilience Lab shall submit an annual report and analysis on its findings to the Governor, the Attorney General, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(6) This section is repealed July 1, 2026, unless reviewed and reenacted by the Legislature before that date.
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