Councilmember Dawn Luedtke on Tuesday will introduce legislation to stop people involved in human trafficking at bodyworks and spas from opening new establishments in Montgomery County.
Bill 34-26, Health and Sanitation – Bodywork Establishments – Amendments, would require applicants for a bodyworks establishment license to disclose all corporate officers and business managers to the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). HHS would be prohibited from issuing a license if a corporate officer or business manager has been convicted of, pleaded guilty or otherwise been found responsible for human trafficking or prostitution-related offenses. Applicants also would be ineligible if those individuals previously owned or managed a bodyworks establishment whose license was revoked.
The legislation was developed in consultation with the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD), members of the County’s Human Trafficking Prevention Committee, and HHS. Since June 2024, Montgomery County has significantly increased enforcement and inspections of massage and bodywork establishments issuing at least 40 civil citations to 25 spas and charging at least 13 spa owners with felony offenses for aiding and abetting illegal massage operations. The County has also cited at least two businesses for illegal operations during the licensing process.
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“Human trafficking harms vulnerable people and often involves force, fraud or coercion. We know this happens at bodyworks establishments operating illegally,” Councilmember Luedtke said. “Our County has done excellent work in identifying this activity and acting to shut down the businesses that promote it and profit from it. Yet there remains a significant loophole for the operators of these establishments to simply open up a new facility under a new name. This legislation will help close the loophole and prevent this problem from popping up at new locations.”
“The Montgomery County Police Department’s Vice and Intelligence Unit has investigated numerous massage parlors and bodywork establishments that have been used as fronts for human trafficking operations concealed behind otherwise legitimate businesses. These establishments have been found to exploit victims through both sex trafficking and labor trafficking,” said Sgt. Melissa Maines of MCPD’s Vice and Intelligence Unit. “Following enforcement actions, the unit has repeatedly observed owners and employees associated with these illicit operations reestablishing themselves under new business names or at different locations, allowing the criminal activity to continue.”
“This bill would aid in our ongoing effort to combat human trafficking by helping prevent repeat offenders from reopening and continuing their illegal operations within the County. It would also enhance protections for vulnerable victims by reducing opportunities for traffickers to establish these businesses which harbor them. Finally, it would support legitimate massage and bodywork establishments by distinguishing and holding accountable those engaged in criminal conduct and strengthen the County’s long-term enforcement efforts against human trafficking,” Maines continued.
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Council President Natali Fani-González and Councilmembers Kate Stewart and Sidney Katz are cosponsoring the bill, which is set for a public hearing on Sept. 15.
Read the original article at mcgov