Louisiana Revised Statutes 15:541.1 – Posting of the National Human Trafficking Resource Center hotline; content; languages; notice; civil penalty
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 15:541.1
- 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.
A. All of the following establishments shall be required to post information regarding the National Human Trafficking Resource Center hotline:
(1) Every massage parlor, spa, or hotel that has been found to be a public nuisance for prostitution as set forth in La. Rev. Stat. 13:4711.
(2) Every strip club or other sexually-oriented business as set forth in La. Rev. Stat. 37:3558(C).
(3)(a) Every full-service fuel facility adjacent to an interstate highway.
(b) Every highway rest stop.
(4) Every outpatient abortion facility as defined by La. Rev. Stat. 40:2175.3.
(5)(a) Every hotel as defined in this Paragraph. Each hotel shall post the information in the same location where other employee notices required by state or federal law are posted.
(b) For purposes of this Paragraph, “hotel” shall mean and include any establishment, both public and private, engaged in the business of furnishing or providing rooms and overnight camping facilities intended or designed for dwelling, lodging, or sleeping purposes to transient guests and does not encompass any hospital, convalescent or nursing home or sanitarium, or any hotel-like facility operated by or in connection with a hospital or medical clinic providing rooms exclusively for patients and their families.
(c) For purposes of this Paragraph, “hotel” shall not include bed and breakfasts or camp and retreat facilities owned and operated by nonprofit organizations exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code provided that the net revenue derived from the organization’s property is devoted wholly to the nonprofit organization’s purposes.
(d) For purposes of this Paragraph, “bed and breakfast” shall mean a lodging facility having no more than ten guest rooms where transient guests are fed and lodged for pay.
(6) Every airport as defined in La. Rev. Stat. 2:1 and by the Federal Aviation Administration, including private-use airports. Each airport shall post the information in the same location where other employee notices required by state or federal law are posted.
(7) Every bus terminal or station or railroad passenger station, including terminals or stations that are privately owned or owned by the state or a local governing authority. Each bus station or terminal or railroad passenger station shall post the information in the same location where other employee notices required by state or federal law are posted.
B.(1)(a) Such posting shall be no smaller than eight and one-half inches by eleven inches and shall contain the following wording in bold typed print of not less than fourteen-point font:
“If you or someone you know is being forced to engage in any activity and cannot leave, whether it is commercial sex, housework, farm work, or any other activity, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or text “Help” to 233733 (Be Free) in order to access help and services.
(b) Such posting shall also comply with any other requirements established by regulations promulgated by the commissioner of the office of alcohol and tobacco control in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.
(2) The language in the posting shall be printed in English, Louisiana French, Spanish, and any other languages that the commissioner of alcohol and tobacco control shall require.
C. The following departments of the state shall provide each establishment described in Subsection A of this Section over which that department exercises any regulatory control or authority with the notice required by this Section. The departments shall post on their websites a sample of the posting described in Subsection B of this Section which shall be accessible for download. The departments are as follows:
(1) Department of Revenue and the office of alcohol and tobacco control.
(2) Department of Transportation and Development.
(3) The Louisiana Department of Health.
D.(1) In addition to the posting required in Subsection B of this Section, beginning on January 1, 2020, each establishment listed in Subsection A of this Section shall affix a flyer to the inside of the door to each bathroom stall at the establishment.
(2) The flyer shall be designed by the Greater New Orleans Human Trafficking Task Force, with the approval of the commissioner of the office of alcohol and tobacco control, and shall be no larger than eight and one-half inches by eleven inches.
(3) No later than December 1, 2019, the Greater New Orleans Human Trafficking Task Force shall transfer the flyer in an electronic format to the commissioner for posting on the website for the office of alcohol and tobacco.
E. A civil penalty in accordance with La. Rev. Stat. 26:96(A) may be assessed for each violation of this Section. The departments listed in Subsection C of this Section or any law enforcement agency with jurisdiction are charged with the enforcement of this Section.
Acts 2012, No. 154, §1; Acts 2013, No. 430, §1; Acts 2014, No. 565, §1; Acts 2016, No. 298, §1; Acts 2018, No. 361, §1, eff. May 20, 2018; Acts 2019, No. 280, §2.