South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force

About the South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force

The South Carolina Human Trafficking Law, S.C. Code Ann. 16-3-2050(B)(1) provides that the Attorney General will chair a task force to address the crime of human trafficking in South Carolina. Task force efforts are in collaboration with federal, state, and local agencies. A major endeavor noted in the law was the development of a plan to address human trafficking. The task force disseminated the South Carolina State Plan to Address Human Trafficking in June of 2014. The law requires that the task force shall coordinate the implementation of the State plan.

Membership

In addition to the South Carolina Office of the Attorney General, the law requires representatives of the following groups be members of the task force:

  • The Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation
  • The South Carolina Police Chiefs Association
  • The South Carolina Sheriffs’ Association
  • The State Law Enforcement Division
  • The Department of Health and Environmental Control Board
  • The State Office of Victim Assistance
  • The South Carolina Commission on Prosecution Coordination
  • The Department of Social Services
  • The Office of the Governor
  • The Department of Employment and Workforce

Besides the aforementioned members, two non-governmental organizations are appointed to the task force: The South Carolina Coalition against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (SCCADVASA) and the South Carolina Victim Assistance Network (SCVAN). An invitation of membership is also extended to representatives of the United States Department of Labor, the Office of the United States Attorney, and federal law enforcement agencies within the State including the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.

Implementing the State Plan

The task force will submit annual reports, inclusive of findings and recommendations, to the Governor, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the President of the Senate. The task force shall also consider completing the following collectively or via one or more of its constituent agencies: 

  • Collect and share trafficking data among government agencies while respecting the privacy of victims of trafficking in persons;
  • Coordinate inter-agency information sharing for the purposes of identifying criminals engaged in trafficking in persons;
  • Establish policies to position state government to work with non-governmental organizations and other elements of civil society to prevent trafficking and provide assistance to United States citizens and foreign national victims;
  • Review the existing services and facilities to meet trafficking victims’ needs and recommend a system to coordinate services;
  • Evaluate the various approaches used by state and local governments to increase public awareness of trafficking in persons;
  • Collect and publish data on trafficking, posting the information on the Attorney General’s website;
  • Design and implement public awareness campaigns to inform potential targets of the risks of victimization;
  • Creation and dissemination of materials to increase the public’s awareness of the extent of trafficking in persons, both US citizens and foreign nationals, within the United States.

Regional Task Forces

 

National Human Trafficking Hotline