5 hotels and motels fail to meet human trafficking training requirements

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA)-- Right now, the district and county attorneys don't have the authority to enforce human trafficking training requirements. That falls on the Texas Attorney General and his office.

Yet throughout the past couple of years when the El Paso County Attorney's Office reached out to the AG, nothing was done. The AG's office reported zero enforcement suits. El Paso County Attorney, Christina Sanchez tells ABC-7 that this is most likely due to lack of resources, among other factors.

According to the County Attorney's office, in 2023 and and 2024 their office partnered with the El Paso Police Department to site and check hotels and motels. In their investigation they found five hotels and motels who failed to meet the training requirements.

Senate Bill 2105/House Bill 4418 would give the County Attorney and the District Attorney the authority to enforce the training requirements upon hotels and motels. They would have to notify the Attorney General's Office beforehand.

Senator César Blanco authored the bill, and he says motels and hotels are often used by human traffickers to exploit victims. Blanco cited The Gateway Hotel as an example saying in part quote,

“We saw this tragedy unfold at the Gateway Hotel in El Paso, where a woman cried out for help, but hotel staff turned a blind eye."