Bill
SB 1806
Redefines trafficking and expands penalties, lowering the victim threshold to more than 5 for enhanced sentences and extending liability to online platforms that promote or facilit
Status & procedural timeline
- Sponsor: Sen. Willie Preston; Chief Co‑Sponsor added: Sen. Karina Villa (added 4/11/2025). Companion: HB 3707.
- Filed/received early 2025 (filed Feb. 6 / received Mar. 3, 2025). Referred to Criminal Justice and other committees; passed both chambers in April 2025.
- Sent to Governor 5/7/2025; signed by Governor 5/19/2025. Stated effective date: September 1, 2025.
- (Legislative records include some conflicting docket entries later in 2025; consult the official Illinois Compiled Statutes or Secretary of State records for final authoritative status.)
Purpose and intent
SB 1806 revises Illinois criminal law governing human trafficking and prostitution-related crimes to broaden criminal definitions, lower thresholds for enhanced sentencing, and expand offenses to cover certain online conduct and licensing disqualifications.
Key substantive provisions
- Redefines/clarifies "trafficking in persons": a person commits trafficking when they knowingly maintain, recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, obtain, advertise, or attempt those acts with the intent or knowledge that another person will be subjected to prostitution or a commercial sex act — including where the result is produced by coercion.
- Enhanced sentencing threshold reduced: when determining sentences (within statutory maximums) the court may impose substantially increased sentences in trafficking cases involving more than 5 victims (replaces prior threshold of more than 10 victims).
- Renames and expands the offense of "promoting prostitution" to "promoting or facilitating prostitution."
- New or expanded liability for operators of online platforms: a person who owns, manages, or operates an “interactive computer service” (defined in the bill) commits the offense if they act with the intent to promote or facilitate another’s prostitution, and either:
- Promote or facilitate prostitution of 5 or more persons; or
- Act in reckless disregard that their conduct contributed to sex trafficking in violation of trafficking statutes.
- Conforming changes to other statutes (explicit example: Liquor Control Act of 1934) to bar issuance of liquor licenses to persons convicted of promoting/facilitating prostitution, keeping a place of prostitution, promoting juvenile prostitution, or related offenses.
Who is affected
- Individuals engaged in trafficking and prostitution-related criminal activity (criminal liability and sentencing exposure).
- Operators and owners of online platforms / interactive computer services who may face criminal exposure if they intentionally promote or recklessly facilitate prostitution or trafficking.
- Applicants for liquor licenses (and similar regulated-license holders) with prior convictions for the enumerated prostitution/trafficking offenses.
- Prosecutors, defense counsel, courts, and regulatory agencies enforcing licensing disqualifications.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Lowers the numeric threshold for aggravated sentences in trafficking prosecutions (from >10 to >5 victims), likely increasing potential penalties in multi‑victim cases.
- Extends criminal risk to online intermediaries that intentionally or recklessly facilitate prostitution/trafficking; platforms may need to revise content-moderation and compliance practices.
- Licensing exclusions may restrict business eligibility for persons with specified convictions.
- The bill adds statutory definitions and cross‑references to other Acts; implementation will involve law enforcement, courts, and licensing agencies to apply new standards.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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