SB 170-AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE TO PROSTITUTION  CHAIR COGHILL reconvened the meeting and announced the consideration of SB 170. "An Act relating to a defense to the crime of prostitution for victims of sex trafficking." He said it was the second hearing on the bill and several questions were awaiting answers. 2:06:24 PM SENATOR BERTA GARDNER, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, sponsor of SB 170, clarified that this is a trafficking bill, not a prostitute bill. She addressed the questions and suggestions from previous testimony. She emphasized that this bill is a first step and should remain uncontroversial. CHAIR COGHILL said a more comprehensive approach may be preferable, but this bill has a chance of passing this year. 2:08:00 PM STEVEN HANDY, Staff, Senator Berta Gardner, Alaska State Legislature, said the suggestions that were proffered during the last hearing were well-intended. However, the goal of this effort is to get to the traffickers who are ruining lives. He noted the resources for enforcement of the bill are already in place. Training for law enforcement and access to service providers for victims of sex trafficking are in place and the bill is a strong link between those two. He thanked the committee for its efforts on the bill. SENATOR GARDNER noted that a representative from the Department of Public Safety was available to discuss training. 2:10:07 PM KELLY HOWELL, Legislative Liaison, Department of Public Safety (DPS), explained that DPS currently provides training on human trafficking and sex trafficking at the Public Safety Training Academy for new police recruits and in regional trainings for existing officers. The training covers identification and investigation of sex trafficking crimes, as well as understanding the dynamics of the crime and how people become victims. She stated that DPS believes that this current training adequately differentiates between someone who is actively engaging in prostitution and someone who is a victim of sex trafficking. CHAIR COGHILL asked if this would be another descriptive element in the training. MS. HOWELL answered yes. CHAIR COGHILL observed that the bill wouldn't have a large fiscal impact. He thanked the sponsor and asked about her expectations of the bill moving forward. SENATOR GARDNER replied that the people who testified during the first hearing of the bill raised interesting questions. One was that if a person is charged with prostitution, they are listed on CourtView even before they've had a trial. There is also a question of people who have a previous history and if there should be retroactive expungement of that record. The other issue is there are a series of crimes that are associated with trafficking a victim might be coerced into committing, such as shoplifting. The problem is to determine which crimes are a result of trafficking and which are not. 2:14:22 PM SENATOR DYSON said trafficking under Alaska law doesn't mean transporting. He asked if "induced" includes: getting hooked on drugs, threats of deportment, threats against family members, and building dependency. SENATOR GARDNER agreed. She noted that some people many choose of their own volition to become involved in commercial sex trade, but the bill addresses people who have been induced in a variety of ways and where someone else benefits. SENATOR DYSON clarified that getting someone hooked on drugs in order to get them to work in the sex trade is a part of what "induced" means. SENATOR GARDNER said it is her understanding that very often that is the case. SENATOR DYSON requested that Senator Gardner state that it is her intention that inducements, such as intentional addiction, are "positive defenses" because the victim was not acting of her own free will. SENATOR GARDNER agreed that is her intention. 2:16:55 PM CHAIR COGHILL said the intent is to make an affirmative defense. SENATOR GARDNER thanked the committee. She said this legislation is a start and a way to better understand this multi-level problem. CHAIR COGHILL asked for the will of the committee. 2:17:52 PM SENATOR DYSON moved to report SB 170 from committee with individual recommendations and attached zero fiscal note(s). CHAIR COGHILL announced that without objection SB 170 moved from the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee.