PHOENIX — Arizona today became the 8th state in the nation to make buying sex a felony on the first offense, after Gov. Katie Hobbs signed HB2720 into law. The bipartisan measure goes straight at the demand that drives sex trafficking — and puts buyers, not victims, on the hook.

The bill rests on a hard truth: as long as buyers create demand for commercial sex, traffickers will keep profiting from the abuse of vulnerable women and children. HB2720 changes that math. It holds exploiters accountable and shields the innocent, shifting the full weight of the law onto those who fuel the trade rather than those they prey upon. The new law also creates penalties for buyers to provide new resources to those that are being trafficked – helping them on the journey from victim to survivor.

For too long, the price a buyer paid failed to match the gravity of what he was buying — a human being. This law corrects that. By holding buyers accountable, Arizona reduces demand, strengthens the protection survivors deserve, and demonstrates to traffickers that their business model no longer pays here.

Encouragingly, HB 2720 passed with broad bipartisan support. CAP thanks Rep. Bliss, Sen. Bravo, and the survivor leaders who carried this fight across the finish line. Their courage moved Arizona one decisive step closer to a future where no woman and no child is ever for sale.

This is what happens when Arizonans refuse to look away. Share this news, give thanks for a hard-won victory, and stay with us — because protecting the vulnerable is work that never ends.