The latest piece of a yearslong effort to crack down on human trafficking was sealed into Georgia law Wednesday as Gov. Brian Kemp signed a package of measures aimed at ending the scourge.
The governor inked the legislation at the urging of first lady Marty Kemp, who has made targeting human trafficking her top legislative priority since her husband was elected in 2018.
She set up a GRACE Commission five years ago to address the crime and recommend solutions, helped secure funding and resources for programs and facilities to assist victims’ transition into society, and lobbied legislators to keep their focus on the issue.
The first lady said the goal is to blend harsher penalties for violators with substantive help for victims, many of whom are teenagers.
“I’ve cried with them. They did not choose this life,” she said of the victims. “I want them to know that somebody is out there fighting for them.”
The measure, Senate Bill 370, is the ninth proposal brought forward by the first lady and the commission that has been signed into law.
It requires manufacturing facilities, medical offices and massage therapists to post human trafficking notices, allows regulators to inspect massage therapy businesses without notice and mandates new training to deter the crime.
The governor also approved two other human trafficking bills.
House Bill 993 makes “grooming” of a minor a new felony offense, and House Bill 1201 authorizes the vacating of the sentences of some victims of sex trafficking who were convicted of crimes.
Earlier measures stiffened penalties on sex traffickers, gave victims new power to sue for damages against perpetrators and required more education about how to prevent the crime.
At Wednesday’s signing ceremony, families of victims and advocates cheered, and some sobbed in joy as the governor put pen to paper. He told the crowd that without his wife’s “dedication to this cause, we would not be where we are today.”
Minutes later, in a quiet corner of the Capitol, Marty Kemp talked about the initial skepticism she faced from officials and advocates when she decided to focus on the crime. Six years after she started, most of the measures have been adopted with unanimous support.
“I’m not afraid of controversy. When I travel around the state with Brian and we talk to Georgians, you find out about their problems and you want to help them,” she said.
“And when I say we were elected, I mean we were elected as a team and a family,” she said. “And we want to take that to heart.”
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