By Suelen Rivera | KTAR
PHOENIX — Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes sent a request to Congress requesting that it assist in making changes to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, alleging the practice isn’t what it advertises itself to be.
In a letter sent last week, Mayes, along with 35 U.S. attorneys general, accused the operator of the hotline, Polaris, of forwarding tips to state law enforcement about adult victims in limited circumstances.
“It appears to us that the hotline is not performing the services it is already funded to perform. Without changes to Polaris’s operating procedures, our state anti-trafficking initiatives gain little from participation in the national hotline. As such, individual states may be forced to establish their own state hotlines, as some already have begun to do,” the letter said.
“A nationally-run hotline not only achieves cost-efficiencies, but also ensures a uniform approach and allows for the collection of cross-state information with regard to human trafficking tips.”
