On May 18, 2021, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed legislation (HB 390) mandating that hotel, motel, inn, or similar business operators with more than 10 rooms offering fee-based temporary lodging require each of their employees to complete an annual human trafficking awareness and prevention training program. The training program, including any supporting supplemental training material, must:
- Be at least 20 minutes long and attorney general approved;
- Be completed by a new employee within 90 days after they were hired; and
- Give employees a completion certificate when they are done.
The training program must include:
- An overview of human trafficking;
- How to identify who is most at risk for human trafficking;
- The difference between labor and sex trafficking when identifying human trafficking in the hospitality industry;
- The employee’s role in reporting and responding to human trafficking; and
- Contact information for reporting human trafficking.
The training may be offered in person or online. Online training must require employees to read all the course materials, view all the videos, complete all the coursework, and certify its completion before they get a completion certificate. The attorney general will publish a list of pre-approved training programs that satisfy the requirements under the law.
The law also includes recordkeeping and posting requirements, enforcement provisions, and retaliation protections for employees who report suspected human trafficking.
The law is effective on September 1, 2021, the Texas Attorney General will adopt the rules necessary to implement it by December 1, 2021, and covered business must begin complying on January 1, 2022.
