Tex. Penal Code § 20A.01 · Chapter 20A. TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS
DEFINITIONS.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
In this chapter:
(1) "Child" means a person younger than 18 years of age.
(1-a) "Coercion" as defined by Section 1.07 includes:
(A) destroying, concealing, confiscating, or withholding from a trafficked person, or threatening to destroy, conceal, confiscate, or withhold from a trafficked person, the person's actual or purported:
(i) government records; or
(ii) identifying information or documents;
(B) causing a trafficked person, without the person's consent, to become intoxicated, as defined by Section 49.01, to a degree that impairs the person's ability to appraise the nature of or resist engaging in any conduct, including performing or providing labor or services; or
(C) withholding alcohol or a controlled substance to a degree that impairs the ability of a trafficked person with a chemical dependency, as defined by Section 462.001, Health and Safety Code, to appraise the nature of or resist engaging in any conduct, including performing or providing labor or services.
(1-b) "Disabled individual" has the meaning assigned by Section 22.021(b).
(2) "Forced labor or services" means labor or services, other than labor or services that constitute sexual conduct, that are performed or provided by another person and obtained through an actor's use of force, fraud, or coercion.
(2-a) "Premises" has the meaning assigned by Section 481.134, Health and Safety Code.
(2-b) "School" means a public or private primary or secondary school.
(3) "Sexual conduct" has the meaning assigned by Section 43.25.
(4) "Traffic" means to transport, entice, recruit, harbor, provide, or otherwise obtain another person by any means.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 641, Sec. 2, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
Amended by:
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 258 (S.B. 11), Sec. 16.01, eff. September 1, 2007.
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 849 (H.B. 1121), Sec. 4, eff. June 15, 2007.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1 (S.B. 24), Sec. 1.01, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 807 (H.B. 1540), Sec. 21, eff. September 1, 2021.
Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 905 (H.B. 3521), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2021.
Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1049 (S.B. 1831), Sec. 5, eff. September 1, 2021.
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 93 (S.B. 1527), Sec. 2.01, eff. September 1, 2023.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.20A.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 9cf6a12f695d8a46a82859f0c38b2829887d94517a72f354b67e1a7deec9b1ab
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
This section cites
Provisions in this library that the text above cites, as it prints each citation. A range cited as “ss. 61.13-61.16” links its first and last provisions.
Health and Safety Code
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.