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It’s back to the drawing board this morning for drafters of a bill aimed at curbing human trafficking in Hawaii following Gov. Linda Lingle‘s veto of . But after a bruising fight this session, some question whether both sides will be able to come together again on new legislation next session. A changing of the guard in the Legislature and Honolulu prosecutor’s office is seen as a boon.

Lingle’s veto means Hawaii remains one of just six states without any laws designed specifically to fight human trafficking. Supporters of the now-defunct SB 2045 say they remain committed to changing that.

“We have allies,” said Kathryn Xian, co-founder of the Pacific Alliance to Stop Slavery, or PASS, the nonprofit behind the failed bill. The group has been a long-present and sometimes divisive voice in the debate over how to handle human trafficking in the islands. “We have allies in HPD, even in the prosecutor’s office.”

That Xian specifies that people “even in the prosector’s office” supported SB 2045 underscores that debate is ongoing between members of a federally-funded local task force charged with finding solutions to Hawaii’s trafficking problem.

“There were fundamental disagreements in how to accomplish, at least, the legislative piece of it,” said Dennis Dunn, director of the Victim Witness Kokua Services division in the Honolulu Department of the Prosecuting Attorney. “But I think most people felt like we were working together.”

¹ The legislative task force — which opted to continue operating last session even without state funding — was dismantled June 30.

But Dunn says another local interagency task force, the federally funded Hawaii Coalition Against Human Trafficking, will likely continue. That group is barred from drafting or lobbying for legislation. The coalition has reapplied for funding and is awaiting word on its application. The coalition brings together Hawaii law enforcement agencies with a slew of local nonprofits to coordinate their management of human trafficking cases. Dunn also says law enforcement is seeking a new federal grant that would expand services for victims.

“We’re hoping we’ll be able to successfully apply for the new federal human trafficking grant, which would provide money for services for both immigrant and domestic sex trafficking victims,” said Dunn. “Of course it’s very competitive but we’re confident that local law enforcement and social service will be able to successfully apply for it. It has both more money and services for a broader spectrum of the victim population.”

Involving law enforcement in the drafting of any future human trafficking bill will be key, as police, prosecutors and public defenders lining up against SB 2045 was likely a major reason behind why Lingle decided to veto the bill. Lingle’s statement on her decision was that SB 2045 would “make prosecutions more difficult under Hawaii law, by not clearly defining the prohibited conduct in such a way that it can be enforced and prosecuted in court,” and closely mirrors law enforcement testimony requesting her veto.

Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha has been tightlipped on the issue, and when asked last month, he said he wasn’t prepared to speak about human trafficking, even generally. Xian said she doesn’t expect support from top officials, and that those who are “lower on the food chain,” better understand how the trafficking problem needs to be confronted.

“First of all, I know Kealoha knows this is a problem because he [managed] runaways for years before he became chief,” she said. “There are really good cops out there that don’t even claim overtime because there’s no money, but they’re out there keeping an eye on kids and on pimps. We need to meet with them … then start advocating all over again.”

Many of the same players are recommitting themselves to tackling the same human trafficking problem with at least some of the same proposed solutions. But at least one legislator said that after years of disagreement between those tasked with working together on the issue, he thinks the future for human trafficking legislation as it’s been proposed thus far looks bleak.

“The difficulty now is that it’s gone through a task force already, so at this point I don’t know where it can go forward,” said Rep. Blake Oshiro, vice-chair of the Judiciary Committee. “It’s just going to end up being déjà vu all over again, and the same rigamaroll. They really need to figure out how they can get law enforcement to support it, so it doesn’t face another veto.”

One thing that’s guaranteed to change next year is local leadership.

“We’re going to have a new governor, a new Legislature, we’ll even have a new prosecutor,” said Dunn. “The players may change but we hope that won’t detract from people’s interest in this topics. There may be a lack of agreement on the fundamentals of the legislative approach, but we all have a role to play, and all of those different roles are needed.”