SB1804

Restitution paid by a convicted defendant: courts must order defendants convicted under Penal Code Chapter 20A, concerning trafficking, or Chapter 43, Subchapter A, concerning prostitution-related offenses, to pay the cost of necessary rehabilitation, including medical, psychiatric and psychological care, plus removal of a tattoo the victim received through force, fraud or coercion related to the offense. The bill removes the former under-18 victim restriction and broadens the covered offenses beyond the previously named trafficking and compelling-prostitution provisions. The rehabilitation expansion matters even where no tattoo is involved. Final law, sections 1–2; Prior restitution law.

A separate state compensation route: trafficking victims may receive up to $3,000 for removal of a tattoo received through force, fraud or coercion related to the offense. The bill adds this expense to the compensation law’s definition of financial loss. The $3,000 ceiling belongs to this state benefit, not to the restitution obligation above. It is not an automatic $3,000 payment, and the tattoo-removal benefit does not extend to every prostitution-related victim merely because the restitution provision is broader. General compensation-application requirements remain; the attorney general determines whether grounds for compensation exist. Final law, sections 3–4; Compensation approval framework.

Which offenses qualify under the new law: the changes apply only to offenses committed on or after September 1, 2025. If any element of the offense occurred before that date, the old law controls. A later application, conviction or tattoo-removal appointment does not by itself bring an older offense under these changes. Final law, sections 5–6.

Passage and amendments: the introduced, Senate committee, Senate-passed, House committee and enrolled versions have the same operative provisions. The official amendment index lists no amendments, and both committees reported the bill without amendments. There was no broader proposal removed during passage to treat as enacted law. Introduced; Senate committee; Senate-passed; House committee; Final law; Version index; Amendment index.

Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.

Qualifying survivors gain a specifically recognized way to recover tattoo-removal costs, and adult victims gain the expanded mandatory rehabilitation-restitution protection. A court order does not guarantee prompt collection: the unchanged law requires the court to consider the defendant’s finances when specifying payment arrangements and allows civil-judgment-style enforcement. State compensation remains a separate eligibility decision. The act does not require victims to remove tattoos. Final law; Restitution payment and enforcement provisions.

The April 7 fiscal note anticipates no significant state or local-government fiscal impact and assumes implementation costs can be absorbed with existing resources. It does not estimate how many victims will qualify, the average removal cost or how much restitution defendants will actually pay. The bill makes no appropriation. Official fiscal note.