The California finance agency opposes a bill aimed at combating child sex trafficking, arguing that it could lead to increased prison inmate costs.

The bill that aims to raise penalties for child sex buyers in California may not receive a vote due to concerns from state finance officials regarding the additional costs of housing inmates in prison.

During an Aug. 7 meeting, California lawmakers suspended Senate Bill 1414, which is expected to cost the state a substantial amount of money, without any public discussion. The bill will either be advanced or killed in a special Thursday hearing.

Republican state Sen. Shannon Grove, who introduced the legislation and is its primary sponsor, told Planet Chronicle Digital that they never imagined it would be this challenging when they were trying to prevent child trafficking in California.

The bill proposes that prosecutors can charge adults accused of soliciting minors with a felony. If the minor is under 16 or between 16 and 18 and a victim of human trafficking, the defendant could be imprisoned for up to three years and fined $10,000.

The bill proposes that adults who repeatedly solicit minors who are at least 10 years younger than them must register annually as sex offenders. Currently, soliciting or purchasing a minor for sex is a misdemeanor that carries a minimum of two days in jail and a maximum of a year or a fine.

At the Assembly Appropriations Committee meeting last week, a representative from the California Department of Finance voiced opposition to the bill.

"Although California has managed to stay under the court-ordered prison population limit and has made progress towards shutting down prisons, the state's efforts may be jeopardized if the prison population continues to rise, resulting in significant financial savings."

The cost of adding one inmate to the prison population annually can range from $10,000 to tens of thousands of dollars, she stated.

Yan stated that similar legislation that expands the list of individuals required to register as sex offenders is estimated to result in costs to the Department of Justice in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Financial concerns have been dismissed by Grove and other lawmakers, who argue that the potential cost is insignificant compared to addressing a major issue statewide.

"Grove stated that despite spending $24 billion on California's homeless population, the situation has worsened. He questioned, "Are they concerned about spending tens of thousands of dollars on the prison population to incarcerate individuals who are purchasing children for sexual exploitation?""

Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, supports the bill, according to his office's social media post on Monday.

"The Governor SUPPORTS this bill, which is standard practice for DOF to oppose bills that have a fiscal impact when not addressed via the budget."

The issue of child sex trafficking shouldn't be viewed as a financial matter, according to California state Assembly Republican leader James Gallagher.

"The billions of dollars California has spent to fix homelessness and the high costs for a proposed high-speed rail project are commendable," he said to Planet Chronicle Digital. "However, their priorities are misplaced if they cannot afford to ensure that johns buying children go to prison."

He encouraged Newsom to assume the role of state executive and advocate for similar policies.

The Senate Public Safety Committee made Grove amend SB 1414 due to financial concerns.

The exclusion of 16 and 17-year-olds from protection resulted in the requirement for these individuals to prove they are victims of trafficking in order for the perpetrator to be charged.

State Sen. Aisha Wahab, chair of the committee, has been contacted by Planet Chronicle Digital.