Shared Hope recently released their annual state report cards.

The Advanced Legislative Framework shifts the focus from criminal laws to the next level of legislative change, ensuring robust and trauma informed protections are in place for trafficking victims.

Shared Hope began grading states in 2011, but after nearly 10 years, we recognized a crucial gap that needed to be addressed: victim protections. In 2020, we undertook a multi-year research and stakeholder engagement process to update and re-center the project on the statutory provision of critical protections and services for survivors and support for stakeholders in the field. Now, the Report Cards on Child & Youth Sex Trafficking grading scale focuses 75%  on how states protect survivors of child and youth sex trafficking, including through the development and funding of Safe Harbor laws, an evidence-based and victim-centered approach to justice.